The Ruling Key
by Zoram Selrof
Summary: Sequel to Mahogany Agony. The year 2207 has rolled in but Hyde and his accomplice are giving trouble to the Satella Police with their hit & run campaign. Things suddenly make a turn for the worse: enemies fought in the past resurface to fight the Satella Police and their allies to try to defeat them. Pressure is placed on Subaru and frustration is on the air. Rated M for lemon.
1. Chapter 1: Rational people

**The Ruling Key**

 **By Zoram Selrof**

 **Chapter 1: Rational people**

11:01 AM (Japan Time), Wednesday January the 16th, 2207...

"... Phew! Break time already."

"I knew it was coming: my 5th Law of Rationality told me!"

"What the heck is that, Kizamaro?"

"Ahem, ahem!"

"Yikes! _Iinchou_!"

"Ki-za-ma-ro...! Focus! On! The! Classes!"

"Y-yes, ma'am!"

"Phew."

"What was that, Tsukasa – kun?"

"N-nothing. Right, Gino – kun?"

"Yeah. Nothing. Today's morning felt too intense."

"Ah! If it's just that."

The Kodama Middle 2-A class students were chatting after the break began: Hoshikaa Subaru (aged 14) sighed in relief, Saishouin Kizamaro came up with another of his "laws", Ushijima Gonta groaned and Shirogane Luna cleared her throat before directing an annoyed glare at Kizamaro: Futaba Tsukasa sighed in relief close by but Luna heard it so she glared at him, too, so he gasped and glanced at a student sitting to his left as if seeking his help.

"Kiboyama Gino – kun… Are you sure of it?"

"I am, _iinchou_!"

Kiboyama Gino was about the same age and height as Tsukasa and Subaru: he had brownish hair and blue eye irises.

"Oh man." Jack sighed.

"Anyway! An excellent _iinchou_ over here will make sure that the reputation of MY class remains unstained and brilliant!"

"Ahem, ahem." The teacher (who'd been speaking with another student near the door) cleared his throat.

"Yikes! I am sorry, _sensei_! It's just that…"

"Is it written anywhere that your duty is to look out for the reputation, Shirogane – san?" He asked.

"N-no, sir…"

"Then could you focus on your _actual_ duties? Such as… Making sure they all keep the cleansing schedule and they properly behave… And by the way, Saishouin – kun… Those "laws" of you are but pointless bragging to make you feel like you're incredibly smart. In case I hadn't told you over 100 times already." He rolled his eyes.

"Y-yes, sir… I deeply apologize!" He stood up all of a sudden and bowed to apologize.

"As long as you admit to it…"

"By the way! Subaru – kun…" Luna called out.

"Yeah, _iinchou_?"

"Did you find that disgraced nobleman?" She asked.

"Hyde? Of course. He's so eager to call for attention he always sends forward notices of his crimes to the TV… We know where he'll strike and all but with Shinobi being far stronger and competent by now it's getting hard to try to catch them… The guy caught me with the guard down a couple days ago and I was unable to chase them…" Subaru sighed in defeat.

"No wonder. The guy's been doing ever since New Year's. Every 2 days, and always at late night… It's enough to tire you out."

"Hmpf! As expected of a disgraced nobleman…" Luna fumed.

She stepped out of the classroom at a brisk pace while the others also headed out and down the stairs into the yard: the trees were covered in snow and the day was cloudy.

"Huh! 6 Celsius… Pretty cold." Subaru glanced at a thermometer.

"Well. It's January so…" Tsukasa shrugged.

"Speaking of which… 3 years, no?" Jack brought up.

"Yeah. About 3 years ago… I met War – Rock… And became "Rock Man"… Followed by the "FM Invasion"… Seems like it was yesterday but since so much things have happened in the meanwhile…"

"I know." Tsukasa sighed.

"Ah! Sorry, Tsukasa – kun…! I didn't…"

"You needn't apologize for that."

"Huh?" Gonta frowned.

"Ah… I see…" Kizamaro muttered.

"What, what?"

"Jeez. Gonta – kun: did you forget? I guess your head is full of gluttony by now…" He sighed.

"No wonder." Jack wasn't surprised.

"Che!" He played the offended.

"Speaking of Rock… Did you lock him on the HQ server again?" Kiboyama asked Subaru.

"Yeah. Despite what he said on December he started going wild with Moon Disaster so Boss ran out of patience… And locked them up again and made sure to place a system with 11 passwords that will automatically change every 12 hours… Complicated but it's to make sure no intruder like Hyde or someone else can easily free them. The 2 of them got it coming, anyway…" Subaru rolled his eyes.

"And, as a result, you use a system to be able to Denpa – Henkan on your own without relying on War Rock… Like Burai…"

"Yeah. Boss developed it for Blood and the others so he only had to slightly tune it so that it adapted to me. No big deal."

"At least now Storm and Miles and properly focus on their VR training without Rock distracting them… Or provoking them." Kiboyama shrugged.

"Yeah. That's true."

"What are you boys gossiping about?" Luna suddenly showed up there and looked like she suspected something.

"Nothing important. Just about how we had to punish Rock and Moon Disaster again…"

"Ah! If that's it, then… By the way! Subaru – kun… Is Misora – chan still working with Okudama Studios?"

"Yeah. As far as I know…"

"Alright. By the way… Do you know something named "Spiriting Morning"? I got an email about it…"

"I guess that's Dr. Yoiri from WAXA…"

"Ah, that old lady… And what's it about?"

"Dr. Yoiri IS a brilliant person but… She tends to mix up concepts and names from time to time and Acid has to correct her. I guess she thought this was a brand of tea or something but it actually is something else and has another name…" He explained.

"Ah. I see. Speaking of WAXA… Is it me or did Queen Tia – sensei's behavior change all of a sudden? She used to be colder and she barely showed up by here…" Luna frowned.

"Had a change of mind… Thought that playing hostile and all would make others take her seriously but they convinced her to quit…"

 _Well. That's not the truth but it's better to keep it like this to prevent_ iinchou _from panicking…_

"I see."

"Huh? By the way, Subaru… Nangoku – san's published an ad and says that he offers "Evil, blessed & repulsive bargain Cards"…" Gonta looked up from his Hunter – VG's screen.

"Sheesh. Must've had one of his "inspirations" again…"

"Undoubtedly." Kizamaro muttered.

"Nangoku – san seems to be too absent – minded as of late." Tsukasa rubbed his chin with the right hand.

"Maybe he's been reading something?" Kiboyama ventured.

"Could be…"

"Oops. It's already 11:21… Let's start to go back up…" Jack checked the Hunter – VG's digital clock.

"Alright. Next is… Math." Subaru remembered.

"Oh boy." Gonta sighed.

"Don't try to copy the homework from Kizamaro, Gonta!" Luna warned.

"I won't! Lesson learnt, _iinchou_!"

"Hmpf! Remember! You must keep on with the diet: it's the punishment I imposed!"

"I knew that!"

"Now, now…" Subaru tried to calm her down.

"Ahem, ahem." The teacher from before called out.

"Yikes!"

"It's not your duty to impose punishments or diets. Maybe I should print out your roles as listed in the school website and glue them on the classroom so that everyone can know them. I'll do it now." He decided with a sigh.

"A-alright, sir." She gulped.

 _At least the psychotherapy is working and she behaves WAY MORE rationally than in December…! She was exasperating back then and drove everyone mad…_

Subaru headed back up to his floor and used the toilet before returning to the classroom: he sat on his seat and drew the textbook while preparing to write down: the other students also did same and just when the bell rang the math teacher (a different one) came in.

"Alright. Let us begin the class. I'll check the attendance…"

The teacher calmly checked that everyone was there before placing the list back inside his case and then heading to the board.

"If you recall, last lesson was about…"

12:23 PM (Japan Time)…

"… I'm - BEATEN!"

"Whoa! Akatsuki – kun: don't yell like that if you may!"

"I'm sorry, Chief, but I really am beaten!"

"At times like these…"

"What?"

"I'd suggested Dancing Morning green tea and…!"

"Hakase. With all due respect… The correct name was Alluring Evening… And it was a popular Thailand cocktail… Very acidic as well… Fell out of fashion 19 years ago."

"Oh, is that so? I mixed them up again!"

"Indeed, hakase."

"Thank you, Acid – chan!"

"Nicknames are unnecessary. Hakase."

"Oh boy."

Akatsuki Shidou dragged his feet into WAXA's Command Room and brusquely sat down on a chair while drawing a groan out of exhaustion, startling the other staff: the WAXA Chief scolded him and Dr. Yoiri began to make a suggestion only to be dully corrected by Acid who calmly corrected her mistake: he seemed to let out a hint of annoyance when Dr. Yoiri used a nickname on him: Daigo, Subaru's father, sighed as he stood near the Chief.

"What happened?" Daigo asked.

"I'm starting to think, and Vadous agrees with me, that…"

"That… What?"

"Training using VR recreations of Shinobi is a waste of time and effort: by reviewing them we've realized why we're having so much trouble handling the guy… He uses a wholly different combat style on each encounter! So even if we get used to _one_ combat style then we get beaten because he attacks with another style which we don't how to counter!"

"Hum. I see." The Chief wasn't too surprised.

"We'd heard rumors of Shinobi stealing books and imagery related to swords and martial arts… _Kendo, karate, taekwondo, judo, aikido,_ free fighting, CQC… Now we see why." A Satella Police Commando who'd just come in commented.

"I see."

"Fua~h… I need some hours' rest! With some luck I'll be back in shape by the evening… Where's the strike?"

"A fashion show displaying the pieces made by modern Western designers… Hyde is smug enough to add "I'll teach them about TRUE Western clothing!" in the advance notice… The guy's one to talk: surely he's never worn a tuxedo." The Commando fumed.

"You're one to talk, Ryuusuke – kun." The Chief scolded.

"I am sorry, sir! I did not mean to offend you, sir!" He saluted.

"Fine. If you apologize then it's fine."

"What time does he say?"

"22:15… The show will be on its climax. We did warn the organizers but they play deaf and are convinced it's a fake by a rival… Talk about stubborn folk!" Ryuusuke sighed.

"Youth nowadays…" Dr. Yoiri sighed as well.

"Yes, yes. We know the rest, thank you very much." The Chief seemingly knew she tended to drool when it came to that topic.

"There was a saying which was… "Let an angel bite my crown if I turn out to be a liar"…"

"Hakase. The correct saying was "let devil bite me if it turns out to be true"…" Acid corrected.

"Oh, is that so? My, my. One's memory…"

"It's not a problem of memory. It's just that you tend to mix them up with other stuff." Daigo replied.

"By the way, Daigo – kun… Are you a "grand miscalculation"?" She suddenly asked.

"HUH?" He looked puzzled.

"Daigo – san can be written as "daigosan" which means "great miscalculation"… Ryuusuke – chan told me, didn't you?"

"I didn't, ma'am."

"Huh? Then that mail wasn't yours?"

"No, ma'am. I've sent no much mail. Ma'am."

"Then… Who? It was yesterday so… It can't be Rock – chan, right?"

"No. Rock got shut in the server on the 3rd…" Akatsuki frowned.

"Which leaves…"

"…Omega's "joker mode"…" Akatsuki groaned.

"Oh come on. Why doesn't Vadous uninstall it already?"

"Were it so easy! "Serious mode" Omega has a habit of overdoing it on the training and overheating his systems leading Vadous to have to upgrade them twice or thrice a week!" He explained.

"So he switches them to compensate?"

"So he says. He's tried to think of a way to fix those, by deleting some files and so but…"

"Has had no luck."

"Yeah. So he resorted to putting an activity limiter making him be unable to move around for more than 3 hours a day. Of course: were an emergency arise then he'll remove that but…"

"Nevertheless… In 3 hours he's got enough time to turn the whole city mad… We've seen it happen too many times already."

"Speaking of emergencies… What did he say about Virus?"

"Virus Trip Daemon, the "real" name of the Night Baron… He says the guy blew his hideout with himself still on it so it's safe to assume he was so smug to use suicide to run away from us… All evidence insofar points that he's dead. There've been no sightings of the guy or anyone who behaved like the guy so…" Akatsuki shrugged and didn't seem to care.

"We should prioritize Hyde and Shinobi."

"Which is what we're doing. Serious mode Omega tried to challenge Shinobi on the strikes 6 days ago but Shinobi managed to make use of his lighter weight to move faster… Omega needs to hold back his power because Shinobi is, after all, a human so… And Shinobi exploits that which drives Omega mad. And which leads to discussions between him and Vadous about battling and all… And sometimes he shuts in a room in the HQ and doesn't come out for days and if he does he behaves in a totally anti-social manner like he was the only one around. Guess he still has a grudge about how Shinobi managed to defeat him, Sigma and Blood Shadow back in December…" Akatsuki went on.

"What a panorama!" Daigo sighed.

"Yeah… Lovely way to start 2207, truly…"

"Ah. So you're back, Akatsuki… What's with the atmosphere?" Queen Tia asked as she stepped in.

"Omega…"

"Which one?"

"The serious one… He's getting on everyone's nerves too… Exchange one evil for another…"

"Oh dear." She sighed.

"Yeah… We thought that with Virus dead dealing with Hyde wouldn't be hard but it'd seem we got too confident…"

"Can't Rock Man use the Meteor Server to deal with them?"

"They always bring jammers with them which impede us from building "Noise" up… Even though Vadous used the data to allow us to use NFB Cards without Noise Change… Their power isn't enough… And they quickly flee, anyway. Fights don't last more than 2-3 minutes… And even though Blood and Sigma are in charge of pursuit… They manage to ditch us because they found and are re-using Mu's "Spirting Away" devices… Y'know, those creepy purple eyeballs which Solo used…"

"Ah! I see. I'd heard of them, yes. They link to another dimension and from there they can go undetected until the exit."

"Yeah. And if they close the exit… You can't know where they went to!"

"And you risk getting trapped there when the device self-destructs: Burai has, of course, tried to analyze them as they work but they've got a lot of protects and stuff… It'd seem Hyde's been ransacking the servers of the mobile marine fortress and found a lot of stuff that both Kuroban Howsad and Kurayami & Kanaya had designed… So he's reusing them… And the device is destructed as soon as the escaping duo jump inside the dimension so there's no time for a full analysis… I tried to do it with Acid too but only got some incomplete data…"

"I see… Things aren't so easy in life, anyway."

"Yeah. I know that. I just need some "Sweet Candy" and a nap of 2 hours plus a shower… See ya."

Akatsuki stood up and headed out while Queen Tia directed a grin at him as if teasing him and he sighed before he entered the elevator and headed down.

"By the way… Did you make sure that that woman is still in jail and hasn't escaped?" Queen Tia turned serious.

"Of course we are. I personally go check it every week. The prison makes an X-ray every 2 weeks to make sure she's a real human and not a Wizard that stands as substitute." A woman Commando came in next.

"Ah! Good, good. We can't lower the guard. By the way: did they try to bribe the officers already?"

"Of course. Plenty of times. But the officers ignored her: she surely is bluffing because she can't have any money on the cell."

"Good. We must be cautious. That woman is capable of anything and you know it." Queen Tia warned.

"Of course. I'm personally taking care of it so don't worry. And remember that "revenge" is a lie… You don't accomplish anything."

"I know. Oh well. I guess I'm running the mood so I'll go back to my desk and continue the analysis job I was charged with. See you."

"She's holding it back but no wonder…" The Commando sighed.

"That child's suffered too much, indeed…" Dr. Yoiri sighed as well.

"Alright. Let's get ready to face off with Hyde and Shinobi tonight!"

22:13 PM (Japan Time)…

"… And next is the newest line by Morgan Anderson of northern Wales which will be sold starting on March…"

"… Hmpf! Talk about stupidity and vanity, my disciple!"

"Guess…so?"

"What's with that idiot-like reply?"

"W-well, Hyde –sama…! I'm supposed to do the dirty job, not to think!"

"Hmpf! True! But I don't need a brainless ape!"

"Oh man."

"Hyde~… The guy's done so much for ya, why don't ya appreciate it?"

"Shut up, you half-bribed right-winged tabloid proxy!"

"Yeah, yeah. I know that tune of yours."

" _Chii gaa hoshii_ …"

"Shut up. Our mission isn't to kill, Assassin! At least not tonight."

Phantom Black was standing atop a tower having some spotlights set on it and aiming west towards a stage shape like a "T" letter: several model men and women were calmly walking down the left side to then turn when they reached the end and go back up the right side: there was quite some audience sitting in portable chairs and the place was on a building's rooftop: he was accompanied by someone else.

"I know I'm named Assassin Shinobi and I've done in 26 foreign agents but tonight Hyde – sama doesn't seek bloodshed. Just terror. So behave and do what I say, Assassin."

Assassin Shinobi appealed as being over a meter and sixty tall and wore a pitch-black bodysuit reminiscent of _ninja_ clothing including a purplish cape hanging from behind his shoulders, two metallic _shuriken_ on his shoulders and knees plus a utility belt.

His face was largely hidden by a balaclava while his brownish teal hair came out from an opening behind it in a totally spiky and wild manner: his eyes' irises' were blood red in color.

A small green _shuriken_ glowed on his forehead, too.

He also carried a _katana_ sheath attached to his back using a leather band which circled his body from the left shoulder until close to the right hip: it was painted purple and black while being decorated with four black dots around it.

Overall he looked like a _ninja_ armed to the teeth yet he didn't strike out as being much older than Subaru  & co.

" _Funn…_!" A voice rang out.

A Denpa Body materialized in front of Assassin Shinobi.

Its shape was reminiscent of a typical ghost, having a white body with no legs and a hood with a Halloween-like face carved on it: the "eyes" shone with a reddish light.

"You heard the _Danna_ … Get ready." Phantom sighed as he materialized to Phantom Black's right.

"Huh? This signature… Them! Sigma and Blood Shadow… Lurking close by, indeed…" Asssassin Shinobi detected.

"Meh! Matters not. We'll shake them off as usual. Let's go!"

"Alright!"

"Phantom Slash!"

"Katana Chaos!"

"Kyah!"

"Guah!"

"Run!"

"That's as far as you come!"

"You came! Acid Ace!"

"Mwah, hah, hah, hah… Rock Man… Time to crave and engrave…!"

"You're one to talk."

"HMPF!"

Acid Ace and Rock Man showed up so Phantom Black headed for him while Assassin Shinobi drew his blade and chuckled in a queer manner yet Rock Man was far from impressed.

"Meteor Light…!"

"Like I'll let ya! My newest combat style… Faster than light!"

Assassin Shinobi suddenly stepped back two steps, lowered his body and suddenly jumped into the air while flipping and swinging the sword, producing "Sonic Boom" attacks on his wake: Rock Man had to focus on dodging and couldn't finish shooting his intended attack: Assassin Shinobi landed a meter NNE of him and suddenly rushed for Rock Man while quickly jumping and changing position: Rock Man began to shoot Charge Shots at him but he didn't mind them despite that they met their mark: Rock Man brought up his default shield but Assassin Shinobi quickly jumped over it and swung his sword in an arch: a "Sonic Boom" impacted Rock Man's back but he hissed and held back the pain as he quickly whipped around while having drawn a Sword Fighter X Battle Card: he slashed six times but Assassin Shinobi easily blocked each attack by standing in a fixed position and simply matching his blade to intercept the next attack: Rock Man wasn't too impressed by that either and he warped to behind Assassin Shinobi to shoot a Hyper Cannon at him but Assassin materialized and formed 8 scimitars which aligned in 4 columns of 2 and deflected the attack back at its source: Rock Man quickly dived for the ground level to dodge it and stood up: Assassin Shinobi chuckled as he looked on from the stage (about 2 meters taller).

"So? Who's in charge?" He taunted.

"Like I care." Rock Man drily shot back.

"Mwah, hah, hah, hah. That face, that face… It amuses me… How you try to appeal as "cool" and "composed"… But your body is far more honest than ya mouth… It's trembling, sweating, shuddering! The thrill, the fear, the despair…! You're trying to hold them at bay! That's all! A mere façade: and then they call ya the "fearless hero"… What bullshit! I laugh at it!"

"COME AT FULL POWER!"

"UACK!"

"Thanks, Sigma – san!"

"Don't mind, man! How's that for a change, you punk?"

"Damn it. You again!"

Sigma, the newcomer Wizard, was about two meters tall and was colored jet black: a red spheroid could be seen set on his chest area and it seemed to be missing the armor over its mass.

His face had two red eyes and one shone brighter than the other: two horns, one of which was almost erased, were set on the sides of the head.

These added a "demonic" look to him.

Green data flows moved around his body and he held a massive black and green sword in his right hand.

He'd suddenly dropped from above and swung the sword to hit the enemy and send him flying and falling into the ground level in the midst of some seats: he grumbled and was trying to get back to his feet somehow.

"Akatsuki – san: I'll exchange!"

"Good! Go, Blood!"

"Roger!"

"Hmpf! Brad Shad, come to fail again!"

"So what, Hyde. And it's "Blood Shadow"."

Blood Shadow, on the other hand, looked rather similar to Rock Man but with several design alternations to him: his main color of choice was red.

He sported black shades and a flock of messy reddish hair came out from behind the helmet given how it only covered the face and the front of the head: his ear-pads had two purple "V" letters drawn inside of them.

His armor had the purple letters "BS" engraved on the chest area while his legs were colored black and had two red stripes running down the legs' sides in a parallel manner.

His right forearm was covered by a device colored red coupled with a piece of it which was colored transparent red: a small indentation near the wrist had the same "BS" initials engraved there: and, where the hand would be, a large double-barreled shotgun emerged instead.

"Huh? I see! Master!" Assassin Shinobi gasped.

"Shut up, you valet come from southern lands! I'm busy getting rid of this red mice!"

"Oh come on. Not now." He grumbled.

"Mwah, hah, hah… The descent of despair?" Sigma suddenly loomed over him and chuckled.

"Grah! That close-up face is scary! Even for a pro killer like me!"

"Blame Boss!"

"Sheesh! Whatever! I'll make pieces outta you too!"

"Come anytime!"

"… Phantom Claw!"

"Eat shotgun!"

"GRAH!"

Phantom Black tried to attack Blood Shadow but he ducked and then jumped towards Phantom Black while loading his shotgun: he discharged it at close distance and the blow made him hit the far wall: he groaned and managed to stand up somehow but then smirked and suddenly "sunk" into the ground because a familiar purple circle had opened there: Assassin Shinobi (who'd been trying to dodge Sigma's sword swings) jumped into the air and dived there: the hole soon closed and spotted something exploding atop the stage: they all grumbled.

"Another vain fight! Again! Why do we it, anyway?" Sigma grumbled.

"It's our duty, Sigma." Blood Shadow fumed.

"Yeah. Complaining doesn't solve anything." Acid Ace added.

"Those cowards…!" Rock Man hissed and clenched the right fist.

 _Cowards! Trying to wear us down through cheats! I'll defeat them yet!_


	2. Chapter 2: Of strategies

**Chapter 2: Of strategies**

13:33 PM (Japan Time)…

"… Pororon! I'm back, Misora!"

"How was the stroll like, Harp?"

"Fine. How about here?"

"Just finished filming the last scene of the 14th episode…"

"Of season 2, no?"

"Yeah. Season 1 was 25 episodes…"

"You look pretty tired."

"It's the usual deal. I just need some water."

"Alright."

"Any news?"

"The usual."

"I see."

Hibiki Misora stepped into her room in Okudama Studios: today she wore a thick brown jacket, a brown hat, blue jeans, white sneakers, white gloves and also sported sunglasses: she was greeted by Harp as she took off the coat and placed it on the clothes rack.

"However… Suzuka looked worried about something and had a bit of a hard time focusing on the filming… I asked her if I could help and she said she'd drop by in a few minutes to talk with me…" Misora explained as she placed the hat, sunglasses and gloves atop the desk.

"Pororon! I see."

"Did Hyde send his newest manifesto?"

"Acid sent me a mail. This time it's a Delphin store in Shinjuku."

"Delphin… That luxury purse brand, huh…" Misora recalled.

"Yeah. Seems like the guy has a mania with them, dunno why."

"Bah. Maybe it's to distract us and make us think we can use them."

"Pororon! Guess that."

"Misora? Can I come in? The squid zapped the albatross." Suzuka called out from the corridor as she knocked at the door.

"Come in. Password is correct."

Suzuka came in followed by Ice, her manager Wizard.

"You see… The reason I'm worried is… this."

She handed Misora a piece of paper and she checked out.

"What! "I'll make of you my newest kitty."… Hmmm… Seeing how the sentence ends in "wa" then it looks like a woman wrote it. The pink ink used suggests that as well along with this kiss drawing. But it could be camouflage." She began to analyze it.

"It was on my home's mailbox."

"Hum… This morning?"

"Yeah. This morning. I checked it yesterday evening but there was nothing there."

"I see. I'll send a photo to the Satella Police."

"Thanks."

"Don't mind it. We're friends, no? Photo sent. But maybe…"

"You were talking about camouflage…"

"Maybe it's a man."

"And by "kitty"…?" She seemed to a have a hunch.

"Yeah. S&M." Misora sighed.

"Damn." She cursed, for once.

"Wasn't that a brand?" Ice asked.

"Oh no. It's torture."

"Goodness!" Ice gasped.

"Yeah. I know. There are some creepy men and women out there: the world's so crazy, really."

"Last thing we needed! Pororon. As if having had to deal with that imposter and that villain gal wasn't enough… Now there's another one out there? Sheesh." Harp sighed.

"Hmmm… No, it's not Shinobi… The guy strikes me as _yaoi_ …" Misora muttered aloud.

"The Alphabet Murderer?" Suzuka gasped.

"Yeah. Same guy. You know, the guy who shows up every 2 days to stir a ruckus…"

"I'd say we're very fortunate to not to have to deal with such a guy!"

"Indeed… The guy's half-crazy to begin with it, anyway."

"Do you have any other suspects?"

"I know 2 women who'd do that but both are in jail. And there's a strict surveillance to make sure they don't escape."

"Hmmm… Maybe someone inspired by them? Or maybe it's someone totally unrelated."

"Could be. I'll later drop by the Satella Police HQ and leave the note there to see if they can analyze something from it… Huh? Wait a min…"

Misora checked the paper from a closer distance and smelt it: she frowned.

"It's got a slight trace of perfume… But it could be a fake, too." She muttered.

"Hmmm… I think this is a very common fragrance…" Suzuka seemed to recall while frowning.

"I wish I could smell." Ice sighed.

"There must be a database about perfume accords and all… I guess the Satella Police could try to figure out the perfume used." Misora suggested.

"Doubt that'll lead anywhere but oh well…"

"It's worth a try, anyway."

Misora's Hunter – VG beeped and she looked at the screen: a new email had arrived so she opened it.

"Hmmm… It's from Akatsuki – san… I'm backup on tonight's battle. Burai and Omega will be the 1st party… Gonta – kun will the other backup… I see…"

"That's your strategy?"

"Yeah. A first party counters them and, after a few minutes, the backup come in. The backup is fresh and the others have wasted some energy already so… It helps catch them by surprise because they need to redo their battle styles."

"I see."

"UGRO~H!" A roar rang out.

"WHAT was THAT?" Suzuka gasped.

"Was from inside… If it'd been from outside then it'd be the Security Wizard posing as a berserk Wizard to scare off unauthorized visitor but in this case…" Misora frowned.

"What was THAT?" Urakata Mamorou called out.

"We don't know yet, sir! It came from the stage!"

"Check it out on the double! There might be an intruder!" He ordered the staff.

"Roger, sir!"

"How odd. The whole area is riddled with perimeter sensors: they should be able to detect anyone approaching…" Ice brought up.

"Maybe they came from the air?"

"Could be. Maybe it's a real berserk Wizard."

"Misora! Trouble! One of the stage's maintenance Wizards has suddenly gone berserk!" Urakata called out.

"Oh boy. Lovely. Well. Can't be helped. Denpa – Henkan! Hibiki Misora, On Air!"

Misora transformed into Harp Note and warped outside the building and into the giant Real Wave stage: a standard red Wizard had gone berserk and was roaring while swinging a Wide Sword like mad: Harp Note landed in front of it and readied his guitar.

"Shock Note!"

"Ugroh! Grawrrrr!"

The Wizard focused his attention on Harp Note but she quickly jumped into the air and shot her Shock Strings to tie the Wizard: she then made a streak of electricity travel down them and electrocute the Wizard: it roared and slowly calmed down until it return to normal state and collapsed on the floor: a sphere of "Crimson" formed and was quickly pulled away while a familiar voice laughed.

"Good work, you little girl!"

"Hyde!" She cursed.

"Mwah, hah, hah! I've got BRAINS! In case you'd forgotten!"

"Oh? And you trembled in fear in front of that "General" guy who'd hired you last year's winter, no?"

"Nya~h!" He growled.

"Charming." She smirked.

"Sheesh! Whatever! That's all I needed! I'll look forward to tonight's clash… Let's see if you'll feel my pressure in your bones!"

"That's my motto. You _lolicon_."

"NYAGRASHA~H!" She apparently hit a sensible spot.

"The guy was about 20 meters SSE from here but I can't sense him anymore so it's safe to say he's gone." Harp whispered.

"Alright. So he hasn't given up on "Crimson" and is using the same means "Dealer" used in the past… There are still parties interested on using them for terrorism and other stuff… And they're ready to pay a lot of money in exchange… Akatsuki – san said so… I think I'll better go have a talk with Dr. Lartes on the afternoon…" She brought the right hand to her chin.

"Pororon! Good idea. It might become a clue."

"Urakata – san? I calmed down the Wizard. I'm going back."

"Thanks, Misora."

"Hyde… Cha won't laugh for much longer! My word!"

19:28 PM (Japan Time)…

"… Hmmm? Ah. It's you. Hibiki."

"Is Dr. Lartes on his lab, Omega?"

"I think so."

"Alright. Sorry for getting in the way."

"Bah. I wasn't doing anything important, anyway."

"Alright, alright."

Harp Note had come inside of a metallic curved corridor with doors on both sides and an arch-shaped ceiling: fluorescent lights were set on the ceiling as well.

"By the way… When's the attack?"

"22:12."

"Good. Let's meet there at 22:00 sharp."

"Roger."

Harp Note was speaking with a Wizard named Omega.

Omega happened to be a Wizard about a meter and eighty tall.

A blue jewel shaped like an inverted triangle was set on the forehead of his helmet which was emitting a cross-shaped flash.

His eyes' irises were blue: they displayed seriousness and were hostile while long blond hair came out from behind him and reached until the floor.

He had a red vest over his mainly black body and red armor over his forearms and boots: two golden circlets were set around his forearms and on his boots as well.

"Later."

"Hum. Later."

Harp Note headed further down the corridor and stopped in front of a door labelled "LAB #1" so she knocked on it.

"Harp Note? Come in."

"OK!"

Harp Note opened the door and stepped into a small office that had a desk on the furthest wall: a PC was set atop it and some documents were placed nearby: there was an adjacent restroom to the left given the banner on the door.

Lartes, the man sitting in front of the desk, had black slightly messy hair plus brownish irises' eyes.

He wore a medic's coat with the ID "Dr. Kazimura Lartes" written on it and sported brown pants plus shoes.

He had a pair of reading glasses on, too.

"I've heard from the Satella Police: Hyde's after "Crimson" again."

"Indeed. We should investigate who wants it. It might allow us to catch Hyde on the scene with the guard lowered."

"Alright. We'll run our searches."

"One question… There's no doubt that Virus is dead?"

"No doubt. Boss did a methodical investigation of the site and found nothing that Virus could use to escape before the fusion reactor collapsed and wiped off the hideout."

"Alright. Just to be sure."

"Of course."

"I'll have some training with Storm and Miles to be ready for tonight. About 10-15 minutes will suffice. Followed by a nap."

"Alright. If you allow me, I'll check your status through the nanomachines… To make sure you're not overdoing it and your body is in a good condition."

"Of course. Go ahead. If you order me to stay put then I'll stay put. I don't want to overdo it." Harp Note calmly nodded in agreement.

"Alright. Good training."

"Thank you. And keep an eye on Subaru – kun's surroundings."

"Of course."

Harp Note stepped out and spotted Sigma standing in the corridor close by and looking tired or defeated.

"Omega scolded you again?" She guessed.

"I didn't do anything! I just came back from investigating the stage's surroundings as per his orders and he yelled at me because I hadn't found Hyde's trail!" He sighed.

"That's unfair from him, true." Dr. Lartes came out because he'd apparently heard it.

"You're not the only one…"

"Ah. Storm."

Storm looked reminiscent of Gemini, the FM who'd picked Tsukasa as a host three years ago.

His main body was shaped like a spheroid and colored in a patch of green identical to Tsukasa's hair.

His head was round and perfectly shaped: a white-like helmet protected it and included a pair of purple-colored thick shades: his skin was normal-colored and his face looked young.

Two sharp needle-like tools emerged from his armored and purple-colored forearms and replaced his normal hands.

The rest of the arms were painted with the black and yellow striping to signal "danger" as if hinting at the usage of the appendixes.

Like most modern Wizards, he had a hover device built into the inferior part of his body instead of legs which had been colored in the same black and yellow stripes combination.

"And me too."

"I see, Miles."

Mile's main body was more "humanoid" in shape and colored in a brownish color similar to sand: some patterns had been drawn over the body to form plates of armor.

His helmet had been painted sea blue and black shades hid his eyes yet it looked strong and resistant.

His arms were colored in a reddish color with white color stripes running up and down their length.

The forearms had extra armor on them and his hands' "skin" was black.

He carried a round golden shield with a silver edge and center on his left hand which was large enough to protect half of his body.

Like a Roman Legionary, he wielded a large lance with a brown body and silver spear set atop it: the weapon looked easy to maneuver and powerful at the same time.

He also had a hover engine built onto the lower part of his body which allowed him to remain air-bone.

"What did he say?" Dr. Lartes sighed.

"We're wasting the time." They both replied.

"Oh come on. Says the man. What are we supposed to do in the meanwhile, huh? Hyde's hideout is constantly moving and it can dive up to 1 km underwater! Satellites can't track it because it's designed to not to emit a heat imprint and its engines are silent!" He groaned.

"So what?" Omega suddenly appeared from one room close by.

"What do you mean by "so what"? If you're SO sure that you'll find it then go find it yourself! By all means!"

"… Hmpf."

"See? I've got a point, no? Blaming others won't help you catch them or beat them, Omega! You of all guys should be aware of it!"

"HMPF!"

"O-me-ga! Are you listening?"

"Dunno."

"Oh come on."

"Let's go the training." Harp Note whispered to the others.

They nodded in silence and left the place while Dr. Lartes confronted Omega over his behavior.

"You're the one who's not being useful to begin with."

"WHAT?" He growled.

"Yeah. I'm sure Boss will agree with me. What can you do apart from growling at others?"

"T-that's…!"

"Anger doesn't help you win a battle. On the contrary. Chances are high that you'll lose like a dog."

"DOG? ME? LARTES!" He got pissed off.

"So what." Dr. Lartes shot back.

"… HMPF!"

SLAM!

Omega returned into the room and slammed the door shut with violence: Dr. Lartes grumbled under his breath.

"Fine. You're relieved from tonight's operation. Blood will be main attacker and Akatsuki backup." He muttered.

He returned to the lab and picked up a Hunter – VG: he dialed a number and Akatsuki showed up on the screen.

"Akatsuki. We'll have to make a change of plans. Omega's got another of his moods and been removed from the operation… Blood will come instead… That fine?"

"Alright. We've still got plenty of time."

"Sorry for the bother."

"Don't mind it, man… Saw it coming, anyway."

"Yeah. The guy's become so predictable… Maybe it'll do well to keep him offline for some days to see if that cools him off while we try to find a way to alter the guy's thinking." He suggested.

"That'd do wonders. Where's Vadous, anyway?"

"He's in the Subspace base, making sure everything is alright." He replied.

"Alright. We'll have a talk when he comes back. See you later."

"Alright, Akatsuki. Let's be ready for tonight."

22:10 PM (Japan Time)…

"… Good. We're in position. Let's go, Shinobi!"

"Roger, my Lord!"

"Hrah! Phantom Claw! Let this store be destroyed!"

"Mwah, hah, hah, hah…!"

"Charged shotgun shot!"

"Hmpf! Flying Knuckles!"

"Oho! Burai~… Fine! I'll cut off ya neck!"

"Hmpf! The red mice come to fail again! Eat this! Phantom Stick!"

"Like it'll hit me, Hyde!"

Phantom Black and Assassin Shinobi showed up inside of the store's main floor (the lights were off and the shutter lowered so it was obviously closed by now): Blood Shadow showed up from hiding crouched behind an exhibition desk and shot at Phantom Black but he ducked and dodged: Burai suddenly dropped from a ventilation duct opening in the ceiling and shot his "Flying Knuckles" at Assassin Shinobi who easily blocked or dodged: he began to chuckle in his queer manner and ran for Burai while Phantom Black tried to hit Blood Shadow with his stick yet Blood Shadow saw it coming and jumped about a meter away way out of the stick's reach: Phantom Black gasped as he was leaning forward to swing and tripped with an almost invisible wire set a few centimeters over the ground at ankle height: he dropped atop the desk and Blood Shadow suddenly made his left hand glow with a purple light: he gripped Phantom Black's neck from behind and a purplish glow surrounded his form: it began to break away.

"What!"

"Oops. The Anti Denpa – Henkan weapon…" Phantom sighed.

"Damn it! That thing Dealer had in their Crimson Machine!"

"That was a prototype… and this is the final version, it'd seem… My HP is falling so I'm unable to transform again, Hyde…" He calmly sighed.

"Damn it! SOLO~! YOU LOWLIFE~!"

"Fuck!" Assassin Shinobi gasped as he glanced there.

"You lowlifes have a weakness. You ARE good at coming up with new strategies and techniques but that bastard… Is an idiot. So that means that his speed and strategy… they never change. So the guy's predictable. Not feeling so confident anymore?" Burai dully lectured.

"Damn!"

Assassin Shinobi tried to break from the clash of his _katana_ with the Laplace Sword but Ox Fire suddenly loomed in front of him and swung the right fist hitting him in the middle of the face: the blow stunned him and he was forced to recoil, dizzy and disoriented: some strings suddenly tied around his body and he dropped the _katana_ : Harp Note showed up from behind.

"This IS a strategy." She muttered.

"Fuck! Woman! Don't get in my way!" He cursed.

"Hmpf!"

"Damn it all! I'm INVINCIBLE~!"

"You're one to talk. You took profit that Rock Man and I were tired from out battle to steal the Dinosaur OOPArt and get the glory for your hideous hide." Burai growled.

"I can't believe that Dr. Orihime's power granted to me wasn't enough to bury you lowlifes!"

"Hmpf. Orihime must've suspected you. So she only gave you a very small fraction of it."

"Damn them all!"

"Oho. Not running away, no… We've set jammers to impede you from warping. And I've got your Ancient Star Carrier here too." Blood Shadow was holding it on his left hand while Ox Fire kept the guy in place.

"Buro~! That was for _iinchou_!" He proclaimed.

"You barbarians come from equally barbaric lands!"

"So what?" Ox Fire shot back.

"Nya~h! This wasn't in my _scenario_!"

"It sucks. That's all." Harp Note smirked.

"Fuck it all! I can't believe I got caught SO easily!"

"Oh? What about last February in Kyoto?" She smirked next.

"Sheesh!"

"I'll use the device on this guy too! Eat this!"

"Fuck!"

Blood Shadow used the device on Assassin Shinobi and he returned to his normal form.

He wore _ninja_ wool clothes which were a balaclava with an opening on the rear, a wool black sweater, pants, socks and sandals.

His hair was brown and it jumped out from behind in a spiky and wild manner.

His eyes' irises were red.

He carried a _katana_ sheath (empty) on his back along with a leather band which stretched diagonally across his chest.

"Good job, you guys! I knew it was a good idea to incorporate Gonta into tonight's strategy. Hyde is too slim to resist Gonta's grip!" Akatsuki walked in, looking satisfied.

"Dream on, Akatsuki! I'll have my revenge!" Hyde cursed.

"Shoo, shoo."

"I wonder about that." A distorted voice rang out all of a sudden.

"Who…?" The good guys wondered.

There was a sudden flash followed by an explosion: the whole space became blinding white in an instant and the good guys were unable to move: there were some sounds and one of them was the familiar sound of the "portals" forming: it was followed by the one made by the "portals" closing and an explosion: the white light began to die down and the good guys gasped.

"Hyde and Shinobi! They're gone!" Akatsuki gasped.

"They had an accomplice?" Burai cursed.

From what it could be seen, someone had cut Harp Note's strings with a sword or something like that given the way they'd dropped into the ground: Ox Fire had surely unwillingly loosened his grip due to the flash and the bang.

"A flash-bang grenade… But who…?" Blood Shadow wondered.

"Virus?" Burai gasped.

"But Boss said he was sure the man was dead!"

"Kuroban, maybe…" He suggested.

"Hmmm… True… We've got no evidence that says that the guy didn't have a change of mind and didn't come back from overseas along with Hikaru…" Akatsuki rubbed his chin.

"Maybe he plans on using them to keep us distracted and busy while he plots something…" Harp Note thought aloud.

"It's possible. He did use someone else as distraction while he readied his plans behind the scenes."

"Well. For the time being… Let's go back to the Satella Police HQ. We'll compile the happenings in a report and we'll think about it. I'd keep the guard up: Hyde might go back to attacking every 2 days again." Akatsuki sighed.

"Fine. You guys go on ahead. I'll try to look for some clue… And question another elder I know of… He might know something about those damned eyeballs." Burai grumbled.

"Fine."

"Got to report to Dr. Lartes so I'll be excusing myself." Blood Shadow stretched.

"Alright. Let's go, Gonta and Misora!"

"OK!"

They both undid their Denpa – Henkan and stepped outside through a side-door: a hover patrol car was waiting so they climbed in and the car sped away from the scene.

"Speaking of culprits… That Ta-something guy, maybe?" Gonta asked.

"Tabuu? No. He did play with us time ago but he was just testing us so he's not interested in those 2."

"Say, Misora – chan! Didn't Subaru have a very powerful Mega Card that that guy lent him? Why didn't he use it?"

"Because it takes a lot of energy to start it up. It makes no sense if the opponent is still at top energy. It's supposed to be used to deliver the finishing blow, Gonta – kun."

"Ah! I see!"

"Buro~! Makes ya wonder if ya really got it!" Ox taunted.

"Wha~t?"

"Guess ya were thinkin' of spicy meat again!"

"T-this…!" Gonta grumbled.

"In-fighting is pointless." Acid dully told them.

"I knew that! Buro~! I was testin' the guy's brains!"

"Pororon! Guess that."

"Now, now. Let's calm down." Misora sighed.

"Sorry!"

"As long as you apologize…" Akatsuki shrugged.

"By the way, what about that note? Did you figure out something?"

"The perfume was a very common one: is sold in almost all stores and is about 2000 Zenny. Hardly a lead. No fingerprints, either."

"Thought as much… But it could be a trap to lead attention elsewhere, from me to Suzuka… Yet I don't think that it's Kuroban or Hikaru. They don't strike me as the types to do so…" Misora thought aloud.

"You never know. People change."

"True, yet… I've got a bad feeling about this."

"No wonder. We can't lower the guard! So! Focus on the job, Gonta!"

 _Kuroban and Hikaru… Is it really them? Or someone we don't know about, some new foe altogether? Too many questions…!_


	3. Chapter 3: Comeback

**Chapter 3: Comeback**

10:04 AM (Japan Time), Saturday January the 19th…

"… For the last time, Omega… Are you going to be RATIONAL?"

"Depends."

"On what?"

"On how I feel like."

"That's too vague. Be serious. Say "yeah" or "no" already."

"And if I don't want to?"

"I'll have to put you offline for some days. Do you like being laughed by Hyde, perhaps?"

"Laughed at?"

"Aren't we supposed to be united and fight back? And instead we're having infighting."

"This is not infighting."

"Don't elude the topic, Omega. Prove that you're mature enough. I upgraded your AI so that your mental "age" is now about 22~25 years old, you know?"

"Hmpf."

Omega was standing in a room somewhere and having a discussion with a man.

The floor was a narrow steel corridor wide enough for one person to stand which was shaped like two trapezes connecting each other by a line: the ground was lowered and covered in a grid – like metal on the spaces between each trapeze and to left and right of the corridor: another room could be seen expanding downwards below this one through the metallic grid's openings.

There was a small circle which marked the start of a rail crossing across the room until the other end: he followed it with his sight and ended up spotting a black metallic armchair with the Alphabet letter "V" painted behind it on purple color placed at the end of the rail and facing Omega.

The other end of the room contained a console which was filled with several LEDs, indicators, switches, levers and buttons plus a built-in keyboard and mouse pad: three gigantic and interconnected LCD screens had been affixed to the wall to be above it.

The room's walls had several metallic stripes built into it which contained round LED lights: the centermost point of the room had a hatch built into the ceiling which was currently closed.

"So? What's the answer?"

"Dunno. Ask Akatsuki."

"Akatsuki is unrelated! Don't switch topics!"

The man sitting on the chair looked close to his mid-twenties.

His eyes' irises were red and his hair was colored jet-black yet it was neatly combed and arranged: there wasn't the slightest trace of facial hair on him.

He wore body armor made of an unknown grayish compound material: some purple patterns were drawn around it.

He sported a ragged, torn and worn out purple cape attached to the back of his shoulders which spread all the way to the ground but had some centimeters' margin of space.

He lastly carried two elaborated sword sheaths attached to the thick central belt colored black running around his waist.

"Maybe you were too busy having an affair with someone?"

"THAT WASN'T FUNNY! THAT'S NOT BEING IRONIC: YOU'RE INSULTING OTHERS' HONOR!" The man suddenly stood up and faced Omega: he was about two to three inches taller than him, even.

"Hmpf. Who's the one who lets anger control them now?" Omega merely taunted.

"Sheesh."

"Maybe you're incompetent to begin with."

"Say that again!"

"Incompetent."

"I never said I was all-powerful!"

"Oh, really?"

"Check your damned memory files! I built an internal search engine for that purpose, didn't I?"

"Thought you stole it from Google."

"WHAT? STEAL? ME? Show me PROOF! And you can't mention that in front of Futaba or Kiboyama or the others!"

"Why not? They'll believe that it's some small corporation they've never heard about before. Or that we're retro maniacs." He shrugged.

"Nevertheless! You insulted my honor! So unless you apologize in the next 5 minutes then I'm going to put you offline for a week!"

"And you'll prove how useless you really are. You had us search across Japan for 2 weeks to find Virus and we couldn't."

"The rascal happened to be way too smart!"

"Hmpf. Playing victim, I see."

"Hi there, _aibou_ … Been a while…"

"That voice… Tabuu?"

"Hmpf…"

A Wizard suddenly appeared out of nowhere inside of the room.

This Wizard had a humanoid shape and seemed to be around two meters tall.

Black armor made of an unknown material covered the whole of his body thus protecting him.

The helmet around his head lacked nose or mouth yet it had two cavities for the eyes which were plain red and lacking iris: but they seemed to be a decoration more than his real eyes, too.

His shoulders were plain and didn't have a spheroid form unlike most Wizards: he had elbows and the armor over the hands included two small dome-shaped objects with the Alphabet "T" character colored in rainbow colors drawn upon them.

The armor extended across his legs, being thicker around the knees and ended in ellipsoid segments protecting his feet: rainbow-colored lines travelled down their length.

The main body was absent of decoration save for a pattern drawing the same Alphabet "T" letter in the middle of the chest the colors of which were constantly shifting and mixing.

Lastly, four large and irregularly-shaped wings formed behind him: its colors were also constantly shifting, too.

"What's with the mood?"

"This guy's turning SO ANNOYING!"

"More like I'm exposing your hypocrisy."

"ARE YOU CALLING ME A HYPOCRITE? LIKE I DIDN'T WORRY ABOUT SUBARU! AND YOU PROTECTED HIM BACK WHEN THE OMICRON EXPEDITION, NO?"

"Dunno. You hadn't totally programmed me back then."

"Forgot that." He grumbled.

"How typical of you."

"WHAT? ARE YOU CALLING ME SENILE NOW?"

"Uh-oh…" Tabuu muttered.

"You go dispose of the trash, cocoon man." Omega taunted.

"Cocoon man? Me? Oh come on." Tabuu groaned.

"Yeah. You spent the whole time napping inside of it, no?"

"If you mean the spacecraft I was travelling in… Then it's true that until I reached a planet I slept to save up energies… But that and this are totally unrelated!"

"Yeah. And you were doing nothing until now."

"I had to stop Death Shadow from copying Albert Wesker's "Uroboros Project"! The guy almost destroyed the world!" He grumbled.

"Ah. So that's what that ugly imitator did in that "alternate Universe" or whatever they name it." He wasn't impressed.

"Yeah! Will you let me speak?"

"Hmpf."

"What brings you back here after all this time? It's been… 1 year and 5 months!" Vadous asked.

"That much? Man. Jumping between different "worlds" totally makes you lose track of time between one and the other… Anyway. I've heard that what seemed to be a simple cat 'n mouse with Hyde and that Shinobi guy has become something far more complicated… Right?"

"Yeah. Someone else is involved. By the way… Have you ever met or heard about someone named "Kuroban"?"

"No."

"So the guy didn't go to your "world"…"

"That guy could travel to other "worlds", too? Talk about curious."

"Yeah. Whatever. You want to lend us a hand?"

"Yeah. I managed to remove Death Shadow's threat but I've got agents keeping an eye there… So I thought that, since I had time, I could come check on things here…"

"Fine. The Satella Police is working on it. But insofar it'd seem all sensors and cameras were hacked beforehand… Mere minutes after Hyde's notice reached them… So they're also searching for some spy program or something like that… Maybe you could keep an eye out for anything suspicious? There might be an insider, even." Vadous told him.

"Gladly. And, Omega… Pride doesn't help you win a battle."

"What would a Tatooine gangster like you know, anyway?"

"Very funny! HMPF!" Tabuu was offended.

He dematerialized while Omega shrugged and headed south towards a platform: he stepped on it and headed down a diagonal ramp.

"I'm – so – gonna – REPROGRAM YOU FROM SCRATCH!" Vadous roared.

"Wait and see." Omega dully taunted back.

 _Fuck! Everything I do turns against me! I need something to CALM DOWN!_

22:53 PM (Bermuda Time), Friday January the 18th…

"… Ru…"

"What now?"

"Ga…"

"Oh come on. Mr. Game & Watch? What the heck is that? And why do you want to check it out? Do you need to, Laplace?"

"Ru…"

"Stop reading the spam inbox!"

"… Ga…"

"Complaining won't change anything."

"… Well, well, well... I see things haven't changed that much over here, either…"

"Hmmm? That voice…"

"Yeah. It's me."

"Tabuu!"

"Been a while."

"So it has."

Solo had been sitting on a chair inside of a small hut somewhere: it was very austere and only had a central room lamp, a wooden chair, a table, and a simple bed: the NW corner was another room and the door was on the south: the north, east and west walls had simple windows looking outside where it was pitch black: he'd been interacting with the Hunter – VG when Laplace, his Wizard, popped up and began to say things in Mu idiom which Solo translated aloud: he sighed and then Tabuu showed up to his right.

"Still grudge me?"

"No. You were testing us. That's all."

"Good. It'd seem you've grown to understand things better."

"Yeah. I was too impatient back then."

"You thought that being hostile would make others take you seriously, wouldn't you?"

"Yeah. So? What's up?"

"Huff. I've just come and I got taunted by Omega. Doesn't seem like he'll listen to anyone. I heard _aibou_ growl about reprogramming him from scratch… Let's hope he does that." He sighed.

"Yeah… Had the nerve of calling me "cosplay punk"… I had to hold back or else we'd gotten to the fists. And then to the swords."

"Ra…"

"You shut up."

"Gu…"

"Did you find anything, by the way?"

"Yeah… But I wasn't sure if I should tell the others…"

"What is it?"

"Orihime's hideout… There wasn't that much dust as before… Which means someone's been visiting it as of often… I make sure to use Float Shoes to avoid touching the ground so it isn't my fault. Maybe those 2 use it as a rendezvous point." He explained.

"Hmmm… Did you try placing a sensor?"

"I did. But it's not working. But it's no wonder… Sensors are sensible to atmospheric EM waves… And the Bermuda Labyrinth EM environment is constantly shifting and changing… And sometimes it causes strong EM bursts so… Only sensors with proper outer casings can properly work… Hence why it's always caused malfunctions in planes across history… And other devices…" Solo calmly explained.

"Hmmm… I see… Suspicious. Guess I'll lurk there and monitor who comes in and out so often. No commoner, that's for sure."

"Of course."

"By the way… Do you have a scientific explanation for what happened back when Rock Man fought Ra Mu? That "voice" which apparently belonged to that man named "Hiko"… I don't believe in miracles."

"It'd seem Hiko was actually alive… And imprisoned by a renegade tribe that had served Mu but rebelled and stole a lot of technology… They were trying to create a mind cluster by scanning people's personalities… That Empty guy noticed that and managed to link to the system and call out to that personality… Which replied… Creating the illusion that that was a miracle… I later investigated it and managed to find their base and free the prisoners… However… Orihime is hiding that fact to avoid her being targeted because she has someone she loves…"

"Hum. I see. Interesting…"

"Maybe. I found it stupid. "Mind cluster"? What's that supposed to achieve, anyway?"

"Makes me remember my creators… They thought that, by fusing several minds, they could achieve a "perfect" mind that could use an "infinite" amount of experiences and sources to make "harmonic" decisions and achieve "the ultimate utopia"…"

"HUH? They really thought that?" Solo was surprised, for once.

"Yeah. They were SO ARROGANT…! Hence why I ditched them! I was fed up with treating me like I was a mere Hunter – VG: use until the new model is released and then toss the other into the junkyard!" He grumbled aloud.

"Man. No wonder." Solo whistled in surprise.

"What "ultimate utopia"? They ended up killing each other in a civil war over supremacy of the planet… Only 10% of the whole planet population survived! And they degenerated into primal tribes! They still are! In fact: Earth is now far more advanced than them!"

"Whoa! Only 10%...!" Solo was white by now.

"Sorry for scaring you. But I thought it could be a good warning to you guys… There have been wars there and there but, fortunately, none like the infamous WWII in the 20th century… No nuclear weapons have been used in war, either… Mostly have been civil wars in sub-developed regions and countries so… But if you thought WWII brought upon a lot of death and misery... It's nothing compared to my planet. So you humans shouldn't get too cocky or greedy… Or something like that WILL happen one day…"

"A-alright."

"My bad. But I felt like I had to. I guess that proves I'm serious this time around…"

"Yeah. More than enough." Solo was still recovering.

"Well. I don't want to scare you anymore so I'll go lurk at the Orihime hideout… I'll contact you if I find anything or anyone… Especially if it's those 2…"

"Delighted. I'll show them I can improve, too."

"Never doubted it. Later."

Tabuu left the scene and Solo sighed in relief: he then spotted Laplace looking outside through the window.

"What's up?"

"Ga! Ga!"

"Someone? Who?"

Solo rushed outside but since it was a jet-black foggy night then he couldn't spot anything: his Hunter – VG suddenly rang and he distractedly pressed the reply button: a distorted chuckle rang out.

"Found you… Solo…"

"Who the hell?" He cursed.

"Interesting talk, indeed…!"

"You overheard it all!"

"Indeed! But you can't find me. I'll admit that I tried to get too close and your Wizard detected me but I've pulled away by now… And still am… I'll soon be away from this island… You can't find me!"

"Who are you?"

"Hmmm… I am one of the… "Growth"…"

"Growth? An organization?"

"A sub-org, to be exacts… A very small branch of a larger one…"

"What! There's a larger org!"

"Indeed. The "Samar"…"

"Samar?"

"We stretch all across the world… And borrow many faces…"

"So you use proxy names and companies to hide your activities…"

"Not even the almighty Satella Police has been able to detect us: is that enough proof of our efficiency?"

"Sheesh. So it'd seem."

"Hmpf. So you're not the stoic main you pretended to be."

"Shaddup."

"Hmpf… Worthless… I could blow you up with that shabby hut but my orders for today don't include that… But tomorrow will be a different tale: or the day after tomorrow… When I get orders to… I'll remove you from our way…" The voice wasn't impressed.

"You're the ones who rescued those bastards?"

"They're useful. To keep the "almighty" Satella Police busy. Playing mouse 'n cat. And one day… When society knows that… Uproar will ensue… And that worthless org will crumble from the pressure… Masses are useful if you know how to manipulate them…"

"Fuck." Solo cursed.

"Heh… Starting to realize it, Solo…? You alone can't stop us… We're not as stupid as Dr. Orihime or Mr. King… Although the second was way more foolish than the first… You may stop us "Growth" but… You won't be able to stop the "Samar"… We've got competent agents…"

"Virus?"

"Oh no. Virus worked for that pathetic "Secret Empire" which was no more than a poor imitation of the "Samar"… Control the underground? Forever? Ridiculous. It's better to use them without them noticing! By beating around the bush and picking the longest route to your goal… It takes time, money and patience but the results are worth it! Farewell!"

The call suddenly ended so Solo cursed under his breath.

 _Fuck. This is turning uglier with every passing minute! Gotta warn them!_

23:58 PM (Japan Time), Saturday January the 19th…

"… This is night patrol, checking Block 3… All nominal… Over."

"This is Central Tower. Roger that."

Some Police Wizards were hovering in a circle formation checking several consoles inside of a control tower that oversaw a prison compound with four long stone buildings stretching from the base of the tower in the four cardinal directions: a gigantic Real Wave dome surrounded the compound, built on an artificial island some kilometers away from the coastline: there no city lights nearby either so it probably was built far away from any city for safety reasons: the Police Wizards were checking some consoles built there and talking with others as they patrolled the compound.

"All four blocks of the Wizard Prison are nominal…"

"Do not lower the guard. HQ warned us that there's the possibility someone might try to strike us. Have emergency lines ready to be activated when something happens."

"Roger that."

"Reinforce the guard of Cell 11 of Block 2 and Cell 4 of Block 4. You know the occupants are hi-rank criminal Wizards."

"Roger that. Assign 6 guards to each one."

"Good."

"Hmpf…" The distorted voice rang out.

"Intruder detected outside of the field!"

"Increase field strength!"

"Search the outer perimeter!"

"Useless… You are but mere puppets… Hmpf… _Marionette Symphony_ , is it?"

"W-what?" They all gasped.

"You dance to the tune of your masters."

"What are you getting at?"

"Is your "will" really a "will" or is it an "illusion"?"

"Get to your point!"

"I said it before: you're but puppets. You can't think outside of some pre-established parameters…"

"Oi! What's with the emergency call? Do it!"

"I'm trying! But there are signal jammers in place!"

"What!"

"Hmpf… By the time your petty masters get to know what's happened it'll be too late… Behold… The might of the "Growth"… Our subtleness… No need for brute force… Just patience…"

"What!"

All screens suddenly beeped and the words "VIRUS ATTACK" appeared on them: Denpa Viruses suddenly materialized inside of the room and the Police Wizards had to fight them back: there was an explosion somewhere and one quickly glanced at the compound map.

"The prisoner of Cell 11 Block 2 has blown out the door from the inside and has escaped!"

"Impossible! Their HP should be at the lowest possible value to rob them of their strength!"

"High levels of Noise detected! It'd seem the prisoner has been absorbing that to power back up!"

"Warning! Cell 4 Block 4 has been blown out too! The other prisoner is escaping as well!"

"Catastrophe!"

"Grua~h! Kurayami's back! HYDE~! SHINOBI~! My revenge will be TERRIBLE~! STICK OUT YOUR NECKS!"

Security footage showed one of the escaped Wizards, named Kurayami.

He simply looked like an imitation of Rock Man's Black Ace form but with blackish shades and no wings.

"Nyah, hah, hah! Don't forget about me! Kanaya, the grand villain! I'm so gonna make you suffer in pain before cutting your necks! We'll have our revenge for your coward backstabbing!"

Kanaya was an imitator of Harp Note: she had purplish skull on her chest instead of the heart and the shades were also black and thick: the bodysuit had changed to a blacker coloring.

"No good!"

"Field strength at max level!"

"Useless…"

"What! Grid 11 has lost power! It's only at 1% strength!"

"Kurayami and Kanaya… Go! Have your revenge! Bury them! Run as wild as you desire! Do whatever you like! Humiliate the Satella Police! Use society to destroy them!" The voice echoed.

"So you're the one who's been providing "Noise" and arranged for our escape, huh?" Kurayami wasn't surprised.

"Fine. If you say that we do as we like…"

"I don't intend to control you. You're useful for our plans. And I wasn't expecting you two to thank me, anyway. All I want is for you 2 to run as wild as possible. That's all there's to it."

"Realistic, huh? Fine."

"Grid 11 is weakened. Break through it."

"Delighted!"

Both Kurayami and Kanaya easily broke through the walls of their respective blocks and ran outside: all Police Wizards were still busy trying to fight back the Viruses and War Rock copies (same ones Dealer had used in the past): they jumped into the air and attacked with a shotgun and a Gattling gun one grid of the field: it shattered like glass and both jumped outside.

"I've provided Wave Roads. And a hideout. I haven't been able to figure out how to locate the behemoth… yet. But I'm sure I'll soon have. Or else you know a way to find it. It's assumed to be cruising at max dive depth hence why it escapes all detection attempts…"

"Fine. We'll figure out something…" Kurayami shrugged.

"Let's go!"

"In the meanwhile… Crumble into dust and fill the society with fear and terror! Explosion!"

"GRUWA~H!"

Explosions rang out all across the compound: the Real Wave field flickered and turned off as the tower collapsed because its foundations had been destroyed: the block buildings began to fall by sections and so did the outer walls: soon only a heap of ruin and dust and smoke remained from the compound.

"The Satella Police will take several hours to figure out what's happened so use that time wisely… You firstly will need to train to get your abilities back to normal levels…"

"Hum. But what if Omega gets in the way?" Kurayami questioned.

"Won't… That man's pride is consuming them and making them fight with their so-called "companions"… So Vadous will take some days to reprogram the "serious mode" from scratch to see if that makes the man more efficient…" The voice told them.

"Hah! Have at cha!" Kanaya laughed.

"So. To confirm: you won't get in our way."

"No." The voice quickly replied.

"And you don't care what we do."

"No."

"And you don't care if the cops try to chase you guys."

"No."

"To sum it up: you don't care about anything."

"In essence."

"Fine enough. Let's go, Kanaya. We could use Dealer's Orbital Base to hide because they won't think we'll be there."

"Delighted."

"One suggestion… Use the "Spiriting Away" device… And you'll make it harder for them to trace you… There's a cache in these coordinates I'll send you… Hyde is using them too…"

"Aha-hah! So if we can make it resonate with a device Hyde is using then we can follow them into the behemoth! And make them suffer slow and endless agony before we cut off their NECKS!" Kurayami snickered and sounded eager.

"Yeah… Just killing them is no fun… Let's make them regret tricking us by engraving the pain in their flesh!"

"I don't care if you kill them. As long as you provide chaos… Then it's good for us." The voice shrugged.

"And if we turn boring then you'll backstab us?"

"Who knows?"

"Hmpf. Fine. We'll see about that… When the time comes."

"Indeed… When the time comes…"

"Let's go, Kanaya. The sooner we get away the better."

"OK. Tee, heh, heh. I hope Hibiki is already shuddering: that note I managed to deliver to the gal's buddy must've had its effect by now. Yum. I can already picture it… My 2 kitties…" She eagerly muttered.

"Do as you like." Kurayami shrugged.

"Yeah… Of course… The Ancient Darkness is back… And it's going to swallow you whole like it was a black hole…"

"Heh, heh, heh… Hoshikawa & company… You'll soon become my excellent slaves… I'll make sure to train you to serve me forever!"

Both laughed in an evil manner…


	4. Chapter 4: Vengeance

**Chapter 4: Vengeance**

06:06 AM (Bermuda Time), Sunday January the 20th…

"… Mwah, hah, hah… So there's a powerful artifact from Mu that Solo hid here… Dunno who sent that mail but… Knowing Solo… It surely it's true… And I still dunno who got us out of that pinch on Friday… Next thing we knew we were back in the behemoth… How odd."

" _Kurushimii_ …"

"Ya wanna deliver pain? Of course! If Solo gets in the way then the guy will suffer pain like never before… It'd be lovely to catch the guy, though… And further humiliate the guy! Mwah, hah, hah."

" _Danmatsumaa_ …"

"Agony? Heh! Like that Virus' guy "Mahogany Agony"… But this time it'll be "Black Agony"! Mwah, hah, hah!"

" _Kuu, kuu, kuu_ …"

Assassin Shinobi crept into Orihime's hideout and looked around: it was very dusty and the armchair in which Orihime had used to sit at inside of that square space was worn out: the curtains were still open as well and the screens only displayed basic data like current location.

"Heh! This thing is pushed away by strong winds from time to time so it takes time to trace it…" He muttered.

 _Not even a distant land, we're stuck on a totally different planet! No peace lookin' at the sky… Trouble's always around so we stay quick with the guns and cannons… Standing as long as we can until we get all Dolls up…_

"Huh? What's that song?" He gasped.

 _Then call all bets off… We'll blow through your tar… Dealings with lives messed up… On a sea of dark matter… every minute matters… Living while other lives shatter… Seeing ghosts scatter… As they pour out… We can handle them…_

"Someone's trying to make fun of me!" He grumbled and drew his _katana_.

 _It's the tar taking over that came unexpected… Hard to accept it… Getting marked for death… Seeing friends snatched and darkly possessed…_

"HMPF!" He scoffed as if he knew something about the song was true.

 _The tar inside stealing the body and breath… Till only a shell is left… Witness to Hell in the flesh… A fight to the death… Screaming "Where's the relief!"… Maybe no more sleep… All swallowed in grief…_

"Sheesh! Show yourself!"

 _Images start to stalk like a beast… I hear voices but no one talking to me… It's like I'm washing away… All my peaceful days… Anyway, anyhow… Nothing left of that scene… If you are losing your way… You need some protection… Black tar, it gets you, where ever you go… They could find you quickly, it's sticky… However you try to tough it out… You just can't beat them…_

"Like that'll impress me! Solo! I know it's you!"

 _They said seek to find the field so we can sharpen skills… But now we can only feel… All the pain of the danger being real… And we may have to kill… Just to stay alive… Cause they've taken away close mates… And we don't know our own fates…_

"Sheesh! I'm going to tear this place to shreds!"

 _We've been tasked to protect and take on ghosts… But now this black tar is new… And the damage is quick… It moves really fast… Plus it covers everything… This wasn't in the profile… So now we've gotta find a way to win or we die out…_

The song suddenly faded and a shotgun blast rang out from close by: it hit Assassin Shinobi's right torso and made him hit the left wall from the blow: he groaned and an invisible hand suddenly gripped his neck to begin to crush it: Assassin materialized behind the attacker and formed the scimitars that flew and stabbed the back of the attacker: the optical camouflage malfunctioned and revealed Kurayami: Assassin Shinobi gasped and quickly kicked the stomach area: Kurayami loosened for an instant but it was enough for him to jump into the ceiling.

"What!"

"Hah! So you're back… I'll cut off your neck in one neat slice!"

"Hmpf. We'll see about that! Eat this!"

BLAM!

"Ugrah!"

"I'll make you go through endless pain!"

"Heh… Heh, heh, heh… Mwah, hah, hah, hah!"

"What the…?"

"Nyah, hah, hah! Good, good! Neat and fresh pain! I missed it… Some excellent pain! It makes me feel excited!" He laughed.

"Forgot this guy's a weird mix of masochist and sadist…!" Kurayami grumbled aloud.

"Hra~h!"

"Damn! Eat shotgun!"

"Useless! GOT YA!"

"Not so fast… Hah!"

"What!"

Assassin Shinobi suddenly looked up and ran towards Kurayami: he shot the shotgun but the opponent dodged and began to swing the blade but Kurayami snickered and sunk inside of a "portal" which soon closed: Assassin Shinobi was unable to halt his built up momentum and collided with the eastern wall: he groaned and tried to recover just as Kurayami suddenly dropped from the ceiling and placed the shotgun's barrels on Assassin Shinobi's back: he gasped and didn't dare to move.

"I'm going to blow you up here and now! Ugrah!"

The scimitars suddenly formed again and hit Kurayami's back again: they plunged deeper given the earlier wounds and he groaned.

"Hah! How stupid. Like I don't have a B Plan!"

"Shit! Forgot about your damned ghost!"

"Hmpf. Phantom Rhapsody, is it?" The mysterious voice rang out.

"Hey! You're the guy from Friday!"

"Yeah! And the guy who freed us!"

"WHAT? Whose side are you on, you bastard?"

"Isn't it obvious? My own side."

"Then why bother get us out of the pinch!"

"You're useful… for now."

"We're not your damned puppets!"

"You are. It's useless to try to face we "Growth"… We've got the "Wiita"…"

"What the fuck is that?"

"Hmpf. Our ultimate weapon."

"What!" Both gasped.

"We save it up for the proper time and moment… When the "Samar", our leaders, give the order… This planet shall be ours!"

"And you want to use us to destroy the Satella Police so that you don't need to bother yourself, huh?" Kurayami grumbled.

"Hmpf. How disappointing. I thought you were smarter."

"WHAT?" Both grumbled at the same time.

"Whatever. I don't care which of you guys die and which of you guys survives. We'll take you out later. This way no – one will oppose the rule of the "Samar"… We're blessed by "that grand person"! They are guiding us: victory is within our grasp! You're but cancer cells."

"CANCER CELLS? US?"

"Hmpf."

"Oi, you bastard! I demand a name!"

"Name…? Gurenna…"

"Gurenna?"

"Farewell!"

"Che! Ran away! I'll deal with you lowlife later! I'm going to have that bastard's neck!"

"Not so fast!"

Assassin Shinobi ran out through the Warp Point and Kurayami followed suit: once the place became quite a sigh rang out and Tabuu became visible as he was sitting on the armchair: his wings weren't there now and he'd seemingly deactivated them.

"Trouble after trouble… As if we didn't have enough. I don't want to reveal my involvement so early so as to make them lower the guard… But this could turn ugly. I better go warn _aibou_ … And the Satella Police… Those mysterious guys sound dangerous…"

He warped outside into the Wave Roads and used the mist to hide his presence: he spotted Kurayami and Assassin Shinobi having a scuffle in one of the crossroads and yelling at each other while attacking each other.

"I'm going to inflict slow and painful torment into you!"

"Mwah, hah, hah! Bring it on, _amateur_! I'll show you how a pro does it: like I did with those 26 foreign agents! Nyah, hah, hah! Flash-bang!"

"Wha!"

Assassin Shinobi dropped a flash-bang and used the distraction to dive for the sea and inside of a "portal" in mid-air which soon closed: Kurayami cursed aloud and growled.

"DAMN THEM ALL!"

 _Hmmm… Let's wait for a chance and if needed I'll stop them myself…_

19:49 PM (Japan Time)…

"… I gotta hurry or I won't make it in time!"

"But, Misora…"

"Don't have time for that!"

"Misora, I…"

"I'm going to be late! Heck!"

"But…!"

"Huff, huff! There, I see it!"

"Wait, Misora…!"

"I don't have time to!"

Harp Note was rushing along a Wave Road while Harp was trying to call out to her: she reached Okudama Studios and landed in the trees to the right of the main road: she then looked up and frowned when she looked at the building.

"How odd. The reception light is off… Why?"

"Misora…"

"Bah. Must've broken."

"But…!"

"Huh? Where's the Security Wizard?"

"MISORA!"

"Whoa! What's up?"

"Do you know what day is it today?"

"Saturday."

"SUNDAY!"

"HUH? SUNDAY~?" She gasped.

"Yeah! Check the calendar!"

"Whoa! True! But then… Today… The studio's closed! Then why did they call me to redo one of the night scenes because the audio wasn't properly recorded?" She wondered.

"I think that mail was a fake."

"But… By whom?"

"By me… Flattened kitty – chan!"

"Wha! That voice…! Cha!"

"Yeah! Me! Been a while~… As flattened as ever!"

"Hmpf! As bulky as ever!"

"BULKY! ME! THIS GAL…!"

"Is cool!"

"SHEESH!"

A voice suddenly rang out behind her and she whipped around to see Kanaya standing there and holding her Gattling gun with both hands while smirking: Harp Note got into battle stance while Kanaya taunted her with a silly nickname: Harp Note countered and she got annoyed but ended up fuming and seemingly trying to ignore that mood.

"Heh! BGM: on! Let's go! To the stage!"

"Fine!"

Kanaya warped and Harp Note followed her into the stage: Kanaya was giggling and Harp Note got annoyed.

 _Living life in the run, with a hand on a gun… Where's the exits, we can't go back where we came from, we can't go back where we came from… Get armed, don't look back… Shoot them with your guns…_

"Gattling gun!"

"Shock Note!"

 _Yes. Get up. Don't give up. Shoot them! All the power you got!_

"Hyper Cannon!"

"Aura!"

 _Hello…? Is this thing on…? Am I all alone…? Is anyone there…? I need a bigger gun… Help if you can…_

"Tee, heh, heh! Ophiucus Queen X!"

"What! Uack!"

"Poison Storm!"

"Kyah!"

"Hyper Cannon!"

"Gah!"

 _Please wake me up… Not to sound cliché… But this world sucks! So close it's a voice I'm hearing… Overwhelms me… Can't stop bleeding… Show me… in the fog… How many times you gotta kill your friends? How do you feel you gotta shoot their head? Just like the endless war… WAR…_

"Huff, huff…!"

"What's up, flattened kitty – chan? Too much dose?"

"Shut…up…!"

Harp Note somehow got back to her feet after being hit by the 3 serial attacks: she had some bruises and wounds on her bodysuit but she ignored them as she tried to keep her balance and panted: Kanaya was smirking.

 _How do I know? This goddamn stuff is all around… How can I get out? This nightmare I've got to escape… Just screaming… You hear them over and over… You will get running… So we can find the way to get out!_

"There's no way out… You better get ready…" She licked her lips.

"You're gross!" Harp Note taunted.

"I'm a beauty"

"Narcissist!"

"How dare you!"

"Hah! Comeback time! Black End Galaxy!"

"What! KYA~H!"

Harp Note taunted Kanaya and she got distracted so she quickly formed the Black End Galaxy and used it: the black hole formed behind Kanaya and Harp Note quickly drew a Sword Fighter X as she jumped at Kanaya's position and quickly attacked 6 times: the black hole collapsed and the shockwave caused her some noticeable wounds but she recovered and landed in a Wave Road next to the stage.

 _We're stuck on a different planet. A lot more than we can manage… But we gotta keep on standing… We're stuck on a different planet. A lot more than we can manage… But we gotta keep on standing… Just want to leave in peace yet… Black tar's gonna keep us restless… Running just to keep our own breaths… Just want to leave in peace yet… Black tar's gonna keep us restless… Running just to keep our own breaths…_

"What's this English rap-like song, anyway?"

"Black Tar, kitty – chan." She smirked back.

"Sheesh! I'm not your "kitty"! I won't let you! Creep! Sadist!"

"Gloat while ya can… Maybe I'll fetch the "new" kitty first and then when cha come to the rescue… Ya as well… Tee, heh, heh!"

"Heck!"

 _People are dripping black tar… It's taken a ship down so far… Don't wanna lose hope… But here we are… Wishing to see the sunrise… But the sun doesn't rise in this sky… Black Tar covers most eyes…_

"Sounded creepy." Harp Note muttered.

"Maybe ya need to sound like that to skyrocket the weekly charts?"

"Of course I don't! And you won't lay a finger on Suzuka! I'll see to it!"

"My, my. Forgot I've got a competent accomplice? And we've got the same tech as that Hyde bastard…"

"What? Oh devil!" She gasped.

"Yeah… I can see it… Your struggling figure! The triangular wooden horse is waiting to turn you into my slave… By making you submit to the pleasure and trapping you into an endless loop… You'll wish pleasure… I'll deny it… You'll obey… And I might let you feel a bit of pleasure… Only a woman can fully tame another woman! Men are so impatient: they should tame other men!" Kanaya laughed.

"That's as far as you come. Defective experiment." Burai suddenly dropped in to her right and drew the Laplace Blade.

"What! Damn it, you again! Eat this! Ga…!"

"Slow. Hrah! Hah! Hyah!"

"Ugrah! Fuck you!"

"Charmed."

She tried to attack Burai but he was way faster and delivered several attacks with the Laplace Blade: Kanaya stepped back and cursed but Burai didn't even beat an eyebrow.

"Men! Always dirtying everything! Kurayami will take care of you! Soon enough… That kitty and that other kitty will be MINE! Nyah, hah, hah, hah, hah!"

She formed the "portal" and Burai tossed something inside: an explosion ensued and the "portal" closed while Burai smirked.

"A Count Bomb X as parting gift…"

"Serves the ugly gal well! So they're loose as well!"

"Yeah. Akatsuki summons us to the HQ. Let's go see what's going on."

"Alright. We need to calm down and figure out the status quo of things!"

20:05 PM (Japan Time)…

"… Good. We've all gathered."

"… So? What exactly is going, Akatsuki – san?"

"Dangerous stuff. Solo warned me already but we've just gotten confirmation of something we feared…"

"That those 2 are loose again?"

"Yeah… The Wizard Prison got demolished to its foundations."

"E~H?"

Subaru, Misora and Solo were talking with Akatsuki in the Satella Police HQ briefing room as they sat on chairs: Akatsuki explained and sighed while Subaru gasped.

"But wasn't it built to resist earthquakes?"

"Of course it was. But the culprits placed explosives on the foundations of the buildings. We still dunno how they accessed them to begin with. And they jammed all outgoing signals so it took several hours to know what had happened… Since it was purposely built far away from any city in the first place…"

"Heck."

"And things are only getting worse… According to Tabuu…"

"Tabuu?" Both he and Misora gasped.

"Ah, yeah… Forgot to say, but… Tabuu's back… And wants to help… So he lurked in Orihime's hideout and saw what happened… Some rascal named "Gurenna" is pulling the strings behind the scenes… Part of some org named "Growth" which is but a very small branch of a larger org named "Samar"… I've picked rumors of it on the underground… Said to use subtle means to achieve their goals…"

"Destroying a prison doesn't seem subtle to me."

"That's because the "Growth" are like their battling squad…"

"Ah. I see."

"And they don't mind doing flashy things as long as it benefits them: these guys claim to have some "Ultimate Weapon" and they plan on using it when the time comes to rule over the Earth…"

"Heck. Let's hope it's not another behemoth." Subaru grumbled.

"Let's hope so, yeah… And, also…"

"What?" Solo asked.

"There have been several hacking attempts as of late… Each one attacked a different spot and came from a different source and a different time yet… If you look at them in sequence… You realize something: their strength slowly increases from one to the other… It'd seem they're slowly testing out our defenses and our response capacity…"

"So that's their so-called "subtleness". Not a blunt attack but an escalated and stretched out attack by phases…" Misora rubbed her chin.

"Yeah. Correct. Acid's working on analyzing the whole data and seeing if we can figure out something. Tabuu's trying to study the eyeballs using his knowledge about dimensions to see if he can figure out how to link it to another one and get into the behemoth… He's tried to search by directly diving into the ocean but it's like looking for a pebble in the midst of a dessert…" Akatsuki sighed.

"Could be under Antarctica for all we know. Hiding beneath the icebergs…" Solo grumbled.

"Yeah. It's constantly moving undetected. The Choina Navy sure created one hell of a monster… Luckily for us the CO in charge of the project got expulsed for allowing it to be stolen in front of their noses and the project to mass-produce them scrapped. They prefer conventional stuff like submarines and aircraft carriers."

"As long as it's something predictable…"

"I know. Better that than some unknown factor. At least we can see those coming, anyway... And most nations only have a few tactical weapons."

"Yeah. Most of them were disarmed about a century ago when a method to safely dispose of the uranium and plutonium of nuclear weapons was discovered… By then "killer satellites" were in orbit… And their highly powered laser guns were more practical than nukes…" Subaru recalled with a nod.

"Some nations still retain old-style weapons… Like Orihime's nation and Queen Tia's and Jack's nation…"

"Why did those wars happen to begin with?"

"Usual reason: new energetic resources discovered on no-man's land between one nation and the other, each wants them, one seizes them, the other wants to steal those and war begins. In Queen Tia's and Jack's case, though, it was because the adjacent nation was envious of their quick Denpa tech development so they stole it while destroying the country's structure… It was a Blitz-like sudden attack series… So before the main nations could react it was all over… And some money sealed the topic as well… Some weapons companies were eager to deploy those in the field and sell them… And pocket money…" Akatsuki sighed.

"Greed, huh?" Solo summed up.

"Yeah."

"It'd seem Mu's civil war was because Ra Mu and the continent interfered with the local weather and there was no rain in the monsoon season for some years in row. Crops were dying, people were dying and the leaders just looked down from that chunk of rock while claiming their fancy statue was a God." Solo explained.

"Empty did say Mu was sealed due to a civil war, yeah."

"Was right. Some of the "Royal Guard" defected to the people's side and a lot of the army, forcefully conscripted, did as well. Didn't you see a lot of dried blood all over the place?"

"Yeah. Was wondering if it really was blood or paint back then…"

"That was… Dried blood from the battles fought all across the place…"

"Yikes!"

"So the revolutionaries reached the Great Shrine and used the power of the OOPArts to seal Ra Mu's power and then seal the Continent. They were proven right: weather soon returned to normal. And thus the Continent slept undisturbed for millennia inside of a "dimensional cage"… The "cap" of the seal is that famous square where we usually meet to have our showdowns… Once you destroyed Ra Mu, the thing fell back inside of the cage, hence why it didn't cause any _tsunami_ or anything: but the release of energy destroyed the cage and warped the whole mass to the real world… Hence why now it's there, on the bottom of the Pacific Ocean… And slowly crumbling away while succumbing to sea-pressure…"

"Yeah. Every time I investigate it I notice new filtrations and further flooded areas… Soon the whole interior of the spire will be flooded… But it shouldn't pose a problem, anyway. We're impervious to sea-pressure and water as Denpa Bodies…" Akatsuki nodded in agreement.

"Well. I think we've deviated from the original topic. Haven't we?" Solo brought up.

"True. My bad."

"Don't mind it. It's about time we faced things with a more mature mentality… Right, Hoshikawa?" Solo calmly glanced at Subaru.

"Yeah, Solo… Anyway… What should we do? Hyde didn't send any notice today. Has he decided to quit?"

"In a sense."

"In a sense?"

"We got a report from Sweden. Some Wizards went berserk and were calmed down but "Crimson" emerged and was retrieved. So Hyde's gone back to getting "Crimson" for shady people who pay well. We dunno where he could strike next and could always disguise it as a malfunction to begin with." Akatsuki sighed.

"Hmpf. The damned cowards…" Solo grumbled.

"Oh well. Then we could re-focus on those 2 instead?"

"Priority One."

"Roger that."

"Solo… Do as you like."

"I don't care if you give orders to me, too. I've got a score to settle with those 2, you know. And if we work together then it'll be more efficient: I don't care if it's ironic." Solo calmly stood up.

"OK."

"My, my. Shidou – chan. Did you know that Flipping Leap is popular nowadays to help you be in top shape?"

"Wasn't that a scam of some years ago?" Solo seemed to recall.

"It was! I remember." Misora confirmed.

"Oh my! Is that so? What a pity."

"Hakase~… I already spend 2 hours a day in the gym!"

"Is that so? I thought you had a personal trainer."

"No~…" He groaned.

"My, my."

"Ahem, ahem…" The Chief called out.

"Oh yes. We should finish the analysis work. See you around, Shidou – chan and introduce me to your uncle."

"I don't have an uncle either, hakase~…!" He groaned next.

"I wouldn't have expected it." Solo muttered.

"You don't know Yoiri – hakase enough." Subaru and Misora sighed.

"Pororon!"

 _That asides… I'm worried. Who are these "Samar"? A foreign nation…?_


	5. Chapter 5: Wild

**Chapter 5: Wild**

09:02 AM (Japan Time), Tuesday January the 22nd…

"… Heh, heh, heh."

"Hold it right there!"

"Heh, heh, heh!"

"Damn Wizard robber! Satella Police! Stop!"

"Heh, heh, heh…!"

Acid Ace was chasing a Heel Wizard that had stolen some stuff and stuffed it inside of a box he was carrying: the Heel Wizard chuckled as he ran along a Wave Road over a city's district and Acid Ace pursued him.

"Heh, heh, heh…!"

"What's with this guy?"

"Possibilities of a trap: 90%." Acid announced.

"Hmpf. Guess he's got buddies. But they shouldn't pose much trouble to begin with."

"In theory."

"Oh come on. Acid. Don't say such defeatist stuff."

"I am being analytic."

"Yeah, yeah. I know that tune of yours. Whatever."

"I think we are getting close."

In effect: they stepped into a warehouse district next to the sea and the Heel Wizard jumped into the street: Acid Ace followed and saw him enter an open side-door: Acid Ace chased him inside and ended inside of a largely unlit warehouse: the door closed and a horse of about 20 Heel Wizards armed with whips showed up: Acid Ace wasn't too surprised.

"DELETE~!"

"Hop!"

He jumped into the air using his boosters and the Heel Wizards hit each other, damaging themselves in the process: they quickly began to quarrel amongst them and Acid Ace chuckled as he stood on a beam close to the ceiling.

"Heh!"

 _The wind blows hard in December… Our last fight, do you remember? Counting the days, since we left… You and I, slipping away._

"What's this song?" He wondered.

"I am recording. Will later search database."

"Alright…"

"Warning! Incoming enemy, south! Distance: 0.45 meters!"

"What!"

Acid Ace jumped to the side and dodged a familiar claw at the end of a large black arm: Phantom Black growled as he appeared on another beam to the south.

"Damn! My plan failed!"

"Ah! I see. So that's how it was."

 _The days gone by when you loved me… No way, the way you now treat me… Pouring wine into my glass, looking back to where we were? There's no direction for us, here it comes the endless light…_

"Who's making this silly song sound?" Phantom Black growled.

"It wasn't you? Because it certainly ain't me or your pawns."

"Bah. Maybe some stupid brat out on the street. Whatever! I'll CRUSH EACH AND ONE OF YOUR BONES!"

"I'm SO scared. You've said it countless times by now."

"This time it's different! I've got this! Hah!"

 _Show us the light, for now… Show us a sign for where we can go… Into the cave with no guiding light… Do you know…? Where is the goal? Don't just follow… We can try, because we're living now… It's bitter, so many sorrows…_

"Hah! "Crimson"! Unleash the "Noise" stored inside you! Turn that guy into a rampaging beast! Mwah, hah, hah!"

Phantom Black drew a "Crimson" container and it began to emit high quantities of "Noise": the Heel Wizards quickly turned berserk and began to attack each other but Acid Ace was unaffected.

"Please. We learn from our mistakes. Acid's got the Black Ace PGM which we've tuned over and over again. In fact… You're doing me a favor. Finalize!"

Acid Ace's color scheme changed and he grinned: Phantom Black gasped and was panicked by now.

 _But we can swallow… It's gonna be our hardest times… Every time I ask the smallest thing… You get mad or just ignore… I don't want to hear… How long we've been there… There's no chance for fear… It's uncontrollable…_

"Black End Galaxy!"

"MUGRO~H!"

 _All things gone from left to right… And this world is changing fast… It's so hard to find an answer for itself… Can we find the key to life? I don't want to be a part… There's a spaceship, we can ride… Now it's time to ride…_

"… Huff, huff… Damn it!"

"You don't learn, Hyde. That's your problem."

"Shut… up! The descendant of Hyde Manor says so!"

Phantom Black had fallen to the ground and managed to get back to his feet somehow but was having trouble standing: Acid Ace was aiming his gun at him and checking the surroundings.

"Damn it! This was supposed to be a perfect trap!"

"There's nothing perfect in life."

 _Let's get started again, do not tire yourself… We'll get back the life for ourselves today… Let's get started again, do not scare yourself… We can take this ride for ourselves…_

"Hum. The song's ceased. Wasn't bad." Acid Ace muttered.

"Can't beat my Viennus Haideus Grandus Spiritualus Operus!"

"Your "Vienna Hyde Grand Spiritual Opera"? Don't make me laugh. I saw you trying to do that on that manor you hid at. You suck at it. As always: you suck at everything. You just happened to be lucky to stumble upon Shinobi when you were gonna steal the Shinobi OOPArt from the temple it was kept at…" Acid Ace fumed.

"I don't detected Shinobi's signature around or any eyeballs." Acid reported.

"Don't lower the guard. Could be outside of radar range."

"Acknowledged."

"Phantom Claw..!"

"Slow."

THUD! PTAF! SMASH! CRASH!

"Grawh!"

"As the Satella Police say… You're weak."

"You're Gurenna! Show yourself!"

"So that's the man…"

Gurenna's voice rang out of nowhere all of a sudden and Phantom Black growled: he was half-embed in some wooden crates as a result of his earlier attempt to attack Acid Ace and which hadn't worked: he began to look around, scowling while Acid Ace calmly checked.

"I'm not here. It's useless to try to find me." The man calmly warned.

"Careful type, huh?"

"If you must."

"I'll destroy you lowlife yet!"

"So what?"

"W-what?"

"Even if you destroy me… I'm just one of many agents of the "Growth"… You'll only eliminate a mere agent…"

"What! I thought you worked alone!"

"Hyde~… Shinobi told ya but ya didn't pay attention!" Phantom sighed in exasperation.

"Shut up, you hybrid tabloid envoy!"

"Sheesh."

"Hmpf. Struggle as much as you want… I won't bother to get you out of a pinch again… I did it because I still needed a bit more time to free those 2 and add further chaos to the picture… You were useful to lure all attention away, anyway." Gurenna scoffed.

"Damn it all! I'm a GENIUS!"

"Genius? Hah. Then tell me. How do black holes form?"

"Huh? Black holes? Well… Black magic, I guess?"

"HMPF! Stupidest reply I've ever heard. Pathetic. I'm about to vomit from the repulsion your stupidity generates!"

"WHAT? Damn it all! I'm off!"

"Hmpf. Next time… If you get in our way… I'll bury you."

Phantom Black ran away using the "portal" and Acid Ace sighed as he was too slow to impede that: he then grumbled under his breath.

"Really, Hyde… You're such a MORON. And an IDIOT. For REAL!"

17:04 PM (Japan Time)…

"You 3!"

"Yikes!"

"I suppose you're not plotting to copy each other's answers!"

"Oh come on! _Iinchou_! Have we ever done that?"

"A warning is a warning, Subaru – kun!"

"More like paranoia."

"Yeah. I agree with Tsukasa – kun…"

"Ahem, ahem."

"Yikes! The homeroom teacher!"

"They're right, Shirogane – san. It's mere paranoia. Just because Ushijima – kun and Saishouin – kun did it that doesn't apply to the rest of the class, does it?"

"W-well, ma'am… I am sorry, ma'am!"

"Maybe we need a list of what an _iinchou_ DOESN'T NEED to be a proper _iinchou_? Huh?"

"N-no, ma'am… Lesson learnt, ma'am…!"

"I'm watching you, child."

Subaru, Tsukasa and Kiboyama had been about to exit the school perimeter once classes were over but Luna suddenly called out to them while looking annoyed: they groaned and answered: the homeroom teacher appeared and began to scold Luna while the 3 guys used the chance to get away.

"We managed to make her stop with her stupid reality distortion field but on the other hand she seems to have become more paranoiac." Tsukasa sighed.

"Hey. Better that than the field." Kiboyama replied.

"You've got a point. Oh well. Let's go to the HQ and work on this. I'll join you 2 today." Subaru calmly told them.

"Alright." Kiboyama shrugged.

"Sure. As usual."

"Guys and girls! Good news! I've got new Battle Cards! And they smell like omens!" Nangoku suddenly appeared there, grinning.

"HUH?" They were perplexed.

"What's the point?" Tsukasa asked.

"Huh? Now that you mention it… Hey! Why did I say omens? I meant… They smell… No, Battle Cards don't smell…! Heck! What did I want to say? I went off my train of thought!" He gasped and placed the right hand over the head as if trying to recall.

"Sorry, Nangoku – san, but we're a bit busy. Excuse us."

"Y-yeah. My bad. Man. What did I want to say? Man."

"Nangoku – san and his sudden flashes of inspiration…" Subaru rolled his eyes.

"I know." Tsukasa sighed.

"Guess it's not nothing new."

"Oh no. He did that before Subaru – kun came back to the school: it's been some years already. He thinks he needs to look "cool" to attract customers."

"I see."

"I remember! SURFING IS THE BEST!" He suddenly exclaimed.

"So what?" The homeroom teacher asked back.

"Ah… Well… Dunno…"

"Sheesh. Nangoku – san: what does that have to do with your store to begin with? It's named "Big Wave" but…"

"I suddenly felt like I had to say it."

"Huff."

"I'm sorry! I'm going back!"

"Please do so. Now." She fumed.

Nangoku ran off like he was going to be scolded a hundred times and got back inside of his store: he suddenly yelped and ran out as some crates were tossed at him from inside of it: Subaru and his pals stopped, surprised, and frowned.

"What?"

"Mwah, hah, hah, hah!"

"Hyde!" Subaru cursed.

"What nerve!" Tsukasa muttered.

"Coming out in the middle of Kodama Town…!"

"Can't be helped… Denpa – Henkan! Hoshikawa Subaru, On Air!"

Subaru activated a program on his Hunter – VG and transformed into Rock Man: he rushed inside of the Big Wave store and found Phantom Black there grinning and looking cocky.

"You fell for the bait! Today I'll crush you!"

"I wonder about that."

"What was that?"

"Jamming Beam!"

"What!"

Rock Man drew what seemed to be a Hyper Cannon but modified to have a small antenna on the muzzle: it emitted some rings of purplish energy and they expanded until they were about Phantom Black's height: they stopped in the center of the body and emitted some pulsations which began to break down the Denpa – Henkan.

"What!"

"Boss hasn't been sitting idle. He used the data from the Mu device and made a more efficient version."

"Gruh! Damn you! Phantom Claw!"

"Slow."

Rock Man easily ducked and flipped to the right to dodge as Phantom Black was trying to force his way out of the energy field created by the series of aligned rings: Rock Man shot several Charge Shots in a row further weakening the enemy: suddenly, however, someone closed their left arm around his neck from behind and a familiar _katana_ was placed inches away from his neck: a chuckle rang out and Assassin Shinobi came into view.

"Mwah, hah, hah…"

"Shit." Rock Man cursed.

"Did ya think Hyde – sama can't predict? Ya fell for the trap! I'm so going to cut off your neck here and now…! _Mishirushi_ …!"

"COME AT FULL POWER! HAH!"

"Ugrah!"

Sigma suddenly ran in and tackled Assassin Shinobi with his body's right side: the blow made him let go of both Rock Man and the _katana_ and made him crash against the wall: Sigma then gripped his head with the right hand and easily lifted him to then loom very close to him: Assassin Shinobi began to gasp and struggle to break free.

"Mwah, hah, hah… Terror! Fear! Feel 'em in ya flesh, for once!"

"D-damn it! T-this face! I can't look at it any longer!"

"You disgraced valet! Where's your damned guts?" Phantom Black growled.

"You're not inches away from this guy's face, Master!"

"Gruh…! Phantom Slash!"

Phantom Black used his tornado to break free but he immediately collapsed out of energies into the floor: Rock Man aimed his Rock Buster at him to keep him controlled while Sigma was holding Assassin Shinobi on place as well.

"How about you give it up already? Your age is over, Hyde. Was over a long time ago." Rock Man challenged.

"Gruh…! Damned plebeians…!"

"Yeah, yeah. Who's the one who got his head stuffed with all of the "Hyde Manor" stupidity by that Omega guy?" Phantom sighed.

"You shut… up…! Gruh!"

"Fools…! We've got an ace in the hole! Hah!"

Assassin Shinobi dropped a flash-bang grenade and Sigma instinctively let go: the familiar sound ensued and when the brightness vanished but were gone: Rock Man and Sigma grumbled.

"Shit. How stubborn." Rock Man fumed.

"Can't be helped… At least we know the new weapon works. That should scare them some more…" Vadous commented over the radio.

"How's Sir Omega's reprogramming going like, Boss?" Sigma asked.

"I'm making progress but I want some more days to work on it. I want to make sure I can remove the roots of that "pride" of his and make him think rationally about battles and all. I'll disable that "full power mode" as well just in case, too." Vadous replied.

"Alright. Let's hope we manage somehow. Tabuu can help, too."

"Remember not to mention his name too often: he's the surprise factor."

"Roger, Boss."

 _At least we've got an unexpected factor which can turn the tables if things were to turn ugly… You won't be laughing for much longer!_

23:14 PM (Japan Time)…

"… Heh! Gotcha!"

"Wha! Kanaya! Don't sneak into me from behind! Didn't we build rooms for each other, anyway?"

"A joke's a joke."

"Fine. How's your front like?"

"I wanted to warn you… They've got a portable device that can disable Denpa – Henkan… So it's dangerous to come out without having an escape route ready…"

"Heck. They haven't been wasting the time."

"No. And now that other kitty is hiding at Hibiki's place too. So it won't be easy to come close. I wouldn't be surprised if they've got Blood Shadow there, hiding, as well."

"Hmmm… Assaulting the Subspace HQ is too reckless. Vadous could show up to get in the way… And he's dangerous… He's good at swords, has many programs and abilities… But most dangerous of all is that weird device he carries around… Info by that "Gurenna" guy suggests it could produce controlled anti-matter…"

"Anti-matter! Heck! No kidding, man!"

Kanaya snuck into Kurayami as he was doing something with a console in a made-shift room inside of Dealer's Orbital Base: they began to talk and Kurayami warned her about info he had: she gasped when Kurayami explained about anti-matter.

"And that's another reason to think VERY carefully before making a move."

"You've got a point… Flash-bangs could do but they'll eventually come up with a method to nullify those. They're not going to let those work forever, either…" Kanaya muttered.

"Guess that…"

"So… What could we use?"

"Hmmm… Some scrambler or jammer, maybe? Or a smoke grenade: they're good to hide your presence too."

"That could do…" Kanaya rubbed her chin.

"But I insist: we must be VERY careful. Or else they'll catch us." Kurayami insisted.

"Yeah. I've got the hunch that Gurenna guy isn't going to do anything to help us to begin with. Unless it's convenient to the rascal's bosses to begin with…"

"Obviously enough…"

"By the way… Couldn't we do a trick?"

"Trick?"

"Like… Wait for the guy to go the toilet, knock him and replace him. Act as him for the rest of the day and after the class ends you come up with some excuse and slip away… You reunite with me and you can play with the guy after I've had my fun." She suggested.

"Hmmm… Could work yet… I think Lartes is constantly monitoring his location… We need to come up with a method to fool Lartes into believing I'm the real one based on the location… Maybe using a beacon of some sort: I place it on the guy's house and Lartes wouldn't suspect it."

"That could do, yeah. But let's think more carefully about the details and give it some days' time. By the way… I found some odd data installed on me… Have you found anything like that?"

"Now that you mention it… Yeah. I'm trying to analyze it and figure out what the heck it is. I'll be damned if that Gurenna bastard set some trick on our bodies to turn us powerless when he feels like it."

"Another reason to figure out what the hell it is! Before the bastard manages to trick us!"

"Yeah. That rascal isn't trustable. At all."

"If only we could figure out who it is…"

"I know. But no – one seems to have heard of that name before. So maybe he made it up for the occasion and has another name." Kurayami suggested with a sigh.

"Sounds possible."

"By the way… That BGM… Where'd you get it?"

"Huh? Didn't YOU get it?" Kanaya seemed to frown.

"No."

"Then it'd seem Gurenna installed it on us."

"Why would the guy bother?"

"Maybe one of his bosses is the smug type who likes to laugh at others and think he's in charge." Kanaya suggested.

"Sounds possible, too…"

"Maybe the whole "org" thing is a lie and it's just Kuroban and Hikaru?"

"Wouldn't surprise me. Kuroban is rumored to be very smart. If he could steal that huge thing then…" Kurayami rubbed his chin.

"And build that legion of robots as well…"

"It's possible." Both concluded.

"But where could the guy be at?" Kanaya wondered.

"Could be in another planet for all we know. We should try to check Omicron to see if there's some hint there. If not we could ready it as a backup base: those guys won't think of it."

"Fine. Let's postpone the plans for some days. That should make them build up tension."

"Alright. It's settled. We set a Wave Road route there but we need to increase our protection because outer space radiation can affect our bodily integrity."

"I know."

"OK. If that's settled then…"

"We can summon Mr. Someone."

"HUH?"

"Kidding, man."

"Well. If you wanted to improve the mood then… I don't mind those jokes of yours." Kurayami shrugged.

"Tee, heh, heh. I'm a sneaky gal."

"Yeah, I know. You used to play _dominatrix_ with me and I was your "kitty" back then…"

"Yeah. But I won't do that anymore. You've got your preys I've got mine so…"

"Alright."

"Hmpf. Maybe you weren't as intelligent as I thought you were. You waste the time thinking on impossible goals instead of possible goals to begin with…" Gurenna's voice rang out with obvious disappointment.

"Gurenna! You rascal! Don't butt into this! Get lost!" Kurayami growled and drew his shotgun.

"Hmpf. Fine… We'll soon see…"

"And stop pretending: you're Kuroban, right!"

"Who knows?"

"We know!"

"Hmpf. And what if?"

"What?" They grumbled.

"Will that help you figure out anything?"

"Sheesh."

"Hmpf. Time will tell."

"We won't let you sneakily delete us!" Kurayami growled.

"Time will tell." He merely repeated.

"I'm getting annoyed for real." Kanaya fumed.

"Hmpf. Childish."

"CHILDISH?"

"Hmpf."

"Damn. The presence's gone." Kurayami cursed.

"What a damned bastard!"

"Totally."

"Whatever. Let's focus on trying to get to Epsilon." Kanaya switched topics.

"Yeah. Let's get there and reuse the underground tunnels to be undetectable from space in case Vadous left some sort of surveillance in place…"

"Roger. I'll get working on the shielding. Maybe we can use the Wave Road's own. Like how Rock Man did when travelling to Planet FM. Wait… Planet FM… Maybe Kuroban's hiding inside of the Black Hole Server? It would do as a hideout too… And he could be plotting something using the server itself and the huge amounts of data stored on it…"

"Could be. Let's make an anonymous tip at the cops and they'll check it out… Maybe they'll do us a favor and take the rascal out in our stead so we can work without the bastard getting in our away." Kurayami suggested with a snicker.

"Hah! We'll show you that we're GENIUSES!" Kanaya giggled.

"Stick out your neck, Kuroban! You'll soon be dead and buried!"

"Nyah, hah, hah, hah! Manslaughter! Nyah, hah, hah!"


	6. Chapter 6: Secretly

**Chapter 6: Secretly**

08:14 AM (Japan Time), Thursday January the 24th…

"… Huff. I'm beaten."

"No wonder, Boss. You're overworking again."

"Lartes, huh… I know. But I need to redo the program."

"By the way… Akatsuki told me they got an anonymous tip-off…"

"What is it?"

"They suspect "Gurenna" is actually Kuroban. And that stuff about the org is a bluff. And he's hiding in the Black Hole Server."

"Hmmm… Could be, could be…"

"Maybe we could ask Cepheus to send some Viruses to check it out?"

"Sure. He must eager to be of help, anyway."

"OK. I'll contact him. Why don't you take a 10 min break and have some tea to relax, though?"

"Good idea. 10 minutes won't make much difference."

Lartes came to talk with Vadous in the command bridge: he was typing into the console and various sub-screens displayed what seemed to be program coding: he turned the chair around to talk with him as Lartes calmly explained him about the tip-off.

"Boss! I've got news!" Sigma ran in.

"What happened?"

"Someone named "Luxaar" sent a manifesto to the Satella Police!"

"Luxaar? Talk about an odd name." Vadous frowned.

"The manifesto says "The "Ruling Key" is on my hands. Soon enough we "Growth", in the name of the "Samar", shall rule this backbone planet. And fulfill our destiny: to remove the Universe's cancer cells!"…"

"Hmmm… Could be another name Kuroban thought of… And it sounds very confident… Or maybe they're bluffing… Hard to say. But it's another reason to check out the Black Hole Server… I'll contact Cepheus NOW and let's speed everything up."

"Alright."

"I'm going back to my post!"

"Fine. Do so."

"I'll go check the nanomachines data just in case."

"Do so."

"Roger."

Both exited the room and Vadous sat back: he inputted some commands a new window popped up to show a close-up of Cepheus' face.

"Cepheus."

"Vadous."

"I'll get straight to the point. I'd like of you to send Viruses to check out the insides of the Black Hole Server. Our culprit could be plotting to use it for all we know."

"Hum. Some witnesses say they've seen odd figures coming in and out as of late… I was hoping to gain more info by waiting…" Cepheus calmly replied.

"I see. It might be our culprit indeed."

"Fine. I'll dispatch a squad of Mettori with live feed. There are still some areas of the giant which we haven't properly explored. Lack of staff: most of it is working on other stuff. Ah yes. And Planet AM has been completely restored by now."

"Good. By the way… Speaking of planets… Did you really find a whole planet inside of that thing or was Sirius bluffing?"

"It'd seem he was bluffing. Yet…"

"Yet…?"

"The reason he attacked us was because he wanted to absorb our planet's core energy for his own hide… Another little bit and the planet's core would've stopped working."

"Devil. What a rascal."

"The squad is in… Hmmm… No IR or X – Ray response… Sound detection reveals nothing… But this is just the surface of the thing… We need to go deeper… This thing is named "Black Hole Server" but it's actually a gigantic metallic spheroid colored black and having an EM ring around it to give it the impression of being so…"

"Ah! I see."

"Hmmm… Insofar I only see the usual residual forms of the "R" series enemies… Huh? What's this?"

"What?"

The camera showed a drawing in the floor colored emerald green and which was fluorescent: it looked like a circle with a second circle thus creating an outer edge having some weird symbols drawn there: a unicursal hexagram was drawn in the center of it.

"The "Oreichalcos Boundary", the symbol of Kuroban's civilization… So maybe he's saying this is the guy's territory…"

"Hum. I see. Let's continue"

"Roger. I'll then try to analyze how long has that been there."

"Could've been for quite a while… It's the first time we've explored this level… We were being cautious: you never know what lurks here. And I didn't want to force the soldiers to."

"Well. Can't be helped."

"Hmmm… Huh? This is…"

"What is it?"

"Looks like graffiti…"

"Hikaru's handiworks…"

"Seems like it. It says "the manly Eisei Aaron – sama!"… Guess he's changed his name." Cepheus read.

"Sounds like the guy, alright. From what info I've got on the guy… I'll then ask Futaba to see if it matches Hikaru's behavior."

"Alright. Let's see… Hmmm… There's some scribbling here too… "Death to the invaders!"…"

"Guess that's Kuroban. His kingdom was invaded by Mu. Although they didn't get to rule over it because over 90% of the army deserted and the kingdom fought back until they expelled them."

"Hum. Yet… Why would he bother?"

"It's a message for Burai."

"Like saying "I'm here: come fight me!"?" Cepheus guessed.

"Yeah. That's the point of that message."

"Hum… What else…? There's another message… "Call me Leader! I now am the "Growth" Leader!"… Odd. Feels out of place, doesn't it?" Cepheus frowned.

"Totally. Maybe it's a reminder to Hikaru? Maybe they're taking different actions and Kuroban doesn't trust radio communications so he resorts to writing stuff on the floor. Feels like the guy."

"I see. So as to avoid being intercepted… Yet I'm sure Hikaru forgot to erase this message."

"Wouldn't surprise me…"

"There doesn't seem to be anything else save… What's this? A list of names… "Getia"… "Almandal"… "Ga – Delg"… "Ga – Bow"… "Laas"… "Dagan"… "Liz"…" Cepheus read aloud.

"Accomplices? Could be… Wizards, maybe…"

"Could be. They could've used the server to create them without anyone noticing." Cepheus thought aloud.

"This could turn ugly… We better do some intensive training and be on top shape… New enemies could possibly come in a row… And catch us with the guard low and without preparations… Kuroban…! You bastard…! You're finally going to get serious, huh? I'm sure that that tale of "I've gone to another planet" was a lie to begin with!" Vadous brought both arms down and banged the armrests.

"Anger…" Cepheus began.

"I know! Huff! I'll send an emergency warning to WAXA. We need to be sharper than we were! Check out if there's anything else!"

"Alright… Anything else… "The fake prophet shall perish!"…" Cepheus spotted.

"Oh come on! Kuroban still grudged Rock Man because he was defeated and because he can use the Burai Noise…! If you hate Mu so much then go settle it with Solo instead! The damned coward! And calls himself a prince and a warrior!"

"Hum. I see. That Kuroban man is dangerous: that's your point."

"Yeah, that's my damned point!"

"Calm down, Vadous. Anger will only blind your judgment."

"Fine. I'll go have some tea. And then I'll warn the Satella Police!" Vadous stood up and fumed.

"Roger that. We'll continue searching with higher numbers of Viruses: maybe we'll find something else sooner. Let's throw stealth over the board and let Kuroban know we're coming for him."

"I totally agree. That should force the guy to show up."

"Or maybe he'll send Hikaru to do some dirty job on his stead."

"Which could be the case too. Hikaru's always looking for a brawl so the guy would love to have one with us. Sheesh. This is getting worse!"

18:45 PM (Japan Time)…

"… Ah… More… Pump in with more strength… Tsukasa – kun…"

"Man. Subaru – kun. You seem to be turning into some super masochist: you want more and more."

"Can't be helped, Tsukasa – kun… After what he went through in December… It must've left sequels on his body…"

"Gino – kun…! You too thrust it harder…! Please…! Oh…!"

"Alright, alright."

Subaru, Kiboyama and Tsukasa were having sex inside of a room onboard the HQ: it had a bed (where they were having fun), a wooden chair, a wooden desk plus a cupboard: there was a closed door to the left that seemed to be an adjacent bathroom.

Subaru was sitting on his knees on the middle and looked excited as Tsukasa (before him) and Kiboyama (behind him) thrust their cocks into his ass: Subaru was rubbing his with the right hand and toying with his left nipple using the left one.

"I'm about to let it out!" He gasped.

"Whoa!"

Subaru suddenly released and his release tightened the other 2 guys' cocks inside of his ass: both gasped and released as well so the group sighed in relief.

"I needed an intense one…! Too much tension these days…! Guess this impatience is a result of December, too…"

"Don't worry about that, Subaru – kun. I'm sure it'll fade away with time and patience." Tsukasa told him.

"A~h… I feel so light-headed too…!" Kiboyama sighed in relief.

"You must be seeing the white world!"

"Yeah… White world… Like the Nirvana… A~h…" He giggled.

"Yeah… I'm getting that feeling too… My mind's going white and my body numb… How about you, Subaru – kun…?"

"Intense…! It was intense…! And I'm totally numb…! Yet… No, it's nothing…" He muttered.

"Tsukasa – kun's cock feels soft and hot…!"

"Same here…!"

"And your cocks inside of my ass make me feel fulfilled…!"

"We're some sneaky guys indeed…!" Kiboyama giggled.

"True… Can't be helped… We're all so handsome…!"

"Yeah… The handsome trio…!" Subaru joked.

"Anyway… Could you stand up so that we can take them out, Subaru – kun?" Tsukasa asked.

"Yeah… Wait a sec…!"

Subaru placed his arms on the bed and pulled upwards: both guys then slid backwards and Subaru sat down.

"My ass feels so expanded…! But it's good!" Subaru grinned.

"Anyway… We're progressing with the studies…!"

"Yeah. Insofar our grades have been pretty good… Gonta seems to be slowly improving but that must be Kizamaro helping him out. As usual, indeed."

"Obviously." Kiboyama shrugged.

"Give us a little break, Subaru – kun… Our cocks are still tired and need a bit of time to get energetic again." Tsukasa requested.

"Alright… There's no rush…."

"By the way… January ends next week… And February begins…"

"February, huh… St. Valentine's…"

"It shouldn't be a problem, no? We do as usual: get the chocolates and that's all."

"Of course." Subaru quickly replied.

"It'd be good if we could've solved this mess before then but… Let's hope so…" Kiboyama sighed.

"Yeah. Let's hope so."

Alarms suddenly rang out and they all gasped.

"Warning. Cybernetic intrusion. Warning. 99 Mettori V1 rushing for Firewall 1. Repeat."

"99 Mettori~?" They all gasped.

"Subaru! Come to the Command Bridge on the double! Blood and Sigma are already engaging along with Storm and Miles but I'd like to have you as backup!" Vadous called out through the speakers.

"R-roger!"

He quickly jumped off the bed and dressed back with his school uniform: he then picked his Hunter – VG and booted it as he ran out into the corridor and headed upwards.

"Status update: 44 enemies deleted."

"No wonder." Subaru muttered under his breath.

He spotted a door named "ELEVATOR TO CONTROL BRIDGE" and opened it to step into a small room having the elevator platform heading to the bridge along a diagonal shaft: he stepped into it and quickly activated a program on his Hunter – VG.

"Denpa – Henkan! Hoshikawa Subaru, On Air!"

He transformed into Rock Man and stepped into the command bridge: an overhead camera showed how the 4 defenders were managing to take out several Viruses in one attack.

"Status update: 85 enemies deleted."

"Don't lower the guard. There could be another wave incoming. Fortunately there are another 5 firewalls. Each one is tuned to resist attacks of high value… But I shouldn't get confident, either." Vadous muttered.

"All enemies: deleted."

"What was the origin?"

"Viruses came from a decommissioned 22nd century satellite which had belonged to Brazil Air Force. Transmission was done from an old military base: some sub-systems still seem to work." The computer reported as a map and satellite images showed up.

"Hmmm… Blood, Rock Man! Go check that place. It might be a dead end but let's make it look like we've bitten the bait. The others: hide your presence and don't move until I order you to. We'll pretend we got confident." Vadous rubbed his chin.

"Roger that!" Rock Man and Blood Shadow acknowledged.

"Don't go yet. Wait a few minutes. Maybe we need you here after all and we can investigate the base later."

"Roger."

"Warning. New transmission detected. 99 Heel Wizards." The computer reported.

"Heel Wizards? That could be annoying." Miles muttered.

"Don't worry. I'll switch their whips' polarity so that they get harmed by them as well."

"Good thinking." Blood Shadow muttered.

"Come at full power!" Sigma grinned.

"Ugra~h!" The Heel Wizards roared.

"Thousand Lances!"

"Voltage Shift!"

Miles drew a lance and quickly began to move from place to place aiming for the core of each enemy: Storm shifted the polarity of the whips so that their electricity affected the users as well: Sigma delivered punches with the left hand while he swung the sword with the right one: the sword's mass sent enemies flying away on impact: Blood Shadow calmly dodged the attacks and discharged both barrels into the enemies.

"Status update: 39 enemies defeated."

"Transmission origin hasn't changed?"

"Affirmative."

"Rock Man! Now's a chance! Enter the satellite!"

"Roger, Boss!"

Rock Man warped into the Cybernetics and headed for gateway leading to outer space: he rode along a Wave Road and reached a satellite that looked old and that it lacked maintenance: he performed "Wave In" into the Cybernetics of it and found a legion of Mettori and Heel Wizards ready there waiting for activation: he began to scan the surroundings and quickly jumped away as a Heavy Down X fell where he'd been at: its eyes glowed red and it began to hover: it seemed to build up speed and shot for Rock Man who dived for the ground so the Virus shot past him but it quickly braked and spun around its axis to then lower height: Rock Man formed a Hyper Cannon Battle Card and shot at it: the blow stopped the thing and Rock Man took the chance to toss a Break Count Bomb at the frozen enemies: the explosion took out a lot of them and the Virus suddenly halted to look there: it suddenly shot away at a mad speed and headed outside through another Wave Road.

"Boss! That could be Hikaru or Kuroban using it to try to stop me." He reported back.

"Hum… I agree. Blood is on his way to support you: the others will take out this new wave of enemies. Don't lower the guard." Vadous calmly ordered.

"Roger that, Boss!"

07:07 AM (Brazil Time)…

"… This is the abandoned Army Satellite Base, huh…"

"Subaru – kun: I'm here. Ready."

"Ah. Blood. Good. I'll be point. Cover my back."

"Roger."

"Be on your toes. Scan the surroundings firstly."

"Roger, Boss."

Rock Man and Blood Shadow reached a small base that had a largely worn down large-scale parabola antenna plus about four 2-story concrete buildings which were rather worn down as well: vegetation flourished there and there too and most of the fence had collapsed or worn down as well.

"Records say this was abandoned 30 years ago. So tech should be pretty simplistic…" Vadous told them.

"Hmmm… No heat signatures… Nothing peculiar through X – Ray… The only radio frequencies are the uplink and downlink from the satellite and the hum of a working computer… Plus a server…" Blood Shadow whispered back.

"So it's being operated from the inside of the computer yet someone had to physically come and switch power back on."

"Yeah. But it's hard to catch a precise heat imprint in this tropical environment…"

"What do you suggest, Boss?"

"We've got not time to waste. Break into the building!"

Both nodded and quickly advanced towards one of the buildings: Rock Man easily kicked the door open and stepped into a control room with four computers set in the far end: one of them was working so he quickly checked the screen.

"Activated 20 minutes ago… Current user… Controller 2… Hum. It's not connected to the outside. That is, it's not linked to the Wave Stations or the Internet. But it's linked to the internal server instead. Which is working as well…" Rock Man checked.

"Go in and I'll cover you."

"Roger. Wave In!"

Rock Man entered the server and found the Virus from before circling around a Heel Wizard who was grumbling and didn't seem to care about what it was doing.

"Satella Police! Stop!"

"WHA? The cops? Oi, ya! That wasn't part of the deal! Ya hired me to send Viruses to some place in orbit, but ya didn't tell me the cops could trace me back here!" The Heel Wizard grumbled at the Virus.

"Aha-hah. A hired hacker, I see…" Rock Man muttered.

"Oi! Answer me, ya!"

"Hmpf. What would a barbarian like you know?" A familiar voice taunted back, unimpressed.

"Wha~t? Say that again, ya!"

"Hmpf!"

The Virus suddenly flew upwards and dropped, crushing the Heel Wizard and deleting them: it floated back upwards.

"Weak die. Strong survive. Survival of the strongest. That's a rule of Nature!"

"Hmpf. You don't seem to have changed much. Kuroban." Rock Man shot back, unimpressed.

"Hmpf. The fake prophet's come to fail again."

"Fail again? Talk about yourself. You've just failed to try to defeat me: and that proxy isn't THAT strong."

"Hmpf. Whatever." The voice changed and it wasn't Gurenna's voice anymore.

"So that means your new pawns are going to show up soon?" Rock Man guessed.

"Who knows, fake prophet? Try to prophesize the future."

"Did I ever say I did that or I could do that to begin with?"

"Hmpf. "Prophet" can also mean a "savior". You barbarian." Kuroban scoffed.

"A fake savior? Oh yeah? Then… Who's the "true" savior, then?"

"No – one."

"Then how do you explain…?"

"Someone behind the scenes did it. And set it up to make you look like a savior."

"I find it hard to believe. Who'd benefit from that? The only one I can think as a conspirator-like character is Gemini but he was deleted 3 years ago." Rock Man wasn't too surprised.

"Don't beat around the bush, Kuroban. You simply hold a grudge over your defeat in battle and Rock Man's "Burai Noise". That's all there's to it and I know it." Vadous interjected.

"The world's shadow ruler says so?"

"Makes you wonder if you're actually 25 as you claim to be or you're still 15."

"WHAT? How dare you!" He got pissed off.

"Charmed."

"HMPF! Whatever. It's too late to stop what's begun, you fakes. It'll soon become clear enough. That you lot are but fake saviors!"

"A smearing campaign? Fine. We can deal with those."

"Damn." Kuroban grumbled.

"… Or you could be misleading us to think of that, too." Vadous calmly added.

"Who knows? Ask you useless proxies."

"Aren't you the one who's using a proxy to begin with? You can perfectly show up there and yet you're using a proxy."

"Like it matters." He tried to elude the topic.

"Eluding topics? Doesn't sound too mature."

"What would you lowlife know about "mature"? You're but a defective experiment."

"Maybe so."

"What?" He was taken aback by the lack of reaction.

"This IS being mature. In case you hadn't noticed."

"Are you saying I'm a fool?" Kuroban growled next.

"Ask the fool killer."

"And! Also! You lot keep secrets from others… How can you "trust" each other despite lying to each other?" He tried to taunt.

"There are some things in the world that are better off not knowing: it's called Need Not To Know."

"Hmpf! Lies and deception… Corruption… What a dirty world!"

"And you think that you alone can make it cleaner?"

"Hmpf. Whatever."

"The signal is constantly re-routed here…" Blood Shadow whispered to Rock Man in the meanwhile.

"Hum. I see. So the guy's being cautious."

"Whatever you attempt is futile! Struggle! In vain! Forever!"

"And if we don't want to? Then what?" Blood Shadow shot back.

"Hmpf. Then die as a dog."

"I'm SO scared."

"What "bonds" and what rubbish? You depend on your knowledge and instinct to survive!"

"Then why did you bother to team up with Hikaru?"

"Hmpf. That man has potential. By allowing them to achieve what they desire… They do whatever I say."

"In short: letting him beat anyone he wants to as long as he executes your orders…" Blood Shadow dully summed up.

"Whatever. I've had enough for today! Soon… Despair shall come! In the name of the High One! It'll bestow Heavenly Punishment! And you lot shall be wiped off like the fake saviors you are and condemned and forgotten by all future generations!"

The Virus exploded and the group fumed as if to vent off their accumulated bad mood.

"As Blood said… I was unable to trace the origin. That means Kuroban was expecting us to track him here and he readied that beforehand. Maybe he's monitoring our movements with Viruses, like Virus Daemon… If he dares to show his hide around… I'll teach him a lesson about not being a bully and dealing with guys his size." Vadous muttered.

"Good." Both nodded in agreement.

"I'll ask of Akatsuki to send an investigation team to see if they can figure anything else. For time being… We'll perform an EVA and retrieve that satellite… Kir Osh will dissect it and see if there's something useful that could become a lead there… You guys come back here."

"Roger."

"I've got a bad feeling… Something's going to happen… We must be ready for whatever comes… Expect the unexpected…!"


	7. Chapter 7: From the abyss

**Chapter 7: From the abyss**

07:47 AM (Japan Time), Saturday January the 26th…

"… My, my. Shidou – chan. You're early."

"Yeah. Going to the gym…"

"At times like these…"

"Oh crap…"

"Hakase… Could we talk about that later?"

"Oh my. Sorry, sorry."

Akatsuki stepped into the lobby of the Satella Police HQ and met with Dr. Yoiri and the Chief: Dr. Yoiri was about to begin one of her endless narrations but the Chief stopped her.

"By the way… Nothing new about Hyde?"

"Nothing. It'd seem he's hiding and must fear coming out."

"Hum. I see."

"Shidou. Incoming call." Acid suddenly warned.

"Who is it?"

"Nangoku Ken."

"The Big Wave owner? How does he know my number?" Akatsuki frowned at the news.

"I do not know."

"Maybe I gave him just in case. Fine. Patch it."

"Roger."

"Hello~? Felicia~? Are you there~?" Nangoku called out.

"Wrong number."

"Who's there? A stalker?"

"Akatsuki Shidou, Satella Police."

"Huh? Ah! I mistook the number! My bad, man! But… Did ya know? SURFING IS THE BEST!"

"In your opinion."

"HUH? What does that mean?"

"Whatever. Have a nice day."

"O-oi! Wait!"

"Call finished."

"Sheesh… Nangoku… Check the number twice before calling!" Akatsuki grumbled.

"Maybe he needs Enlightening Tea."

"Hakase. It's "Mystifying Tea"." Acid dully corrected.

"Oh, is that so? I mixed them up again. My, my. You sure have a useful database, Acid – chan."

"It's not my database. It's the Internet." Acid sighed.

"Ah! I see, I see."

"You programmed me, hakase. So you should know that."

"Yes, I know! I had forgotten, that's all. Acid – chan."

"Hakase. Nicknames are unnecessary."

"Don't be so stoic, my child… You sound like a lawyer."

"Not again." He grumbled, for once.

"Oh my. Did I say something bad?"

"I don't like being called like that. If you'll excuse me…"

He suddenly warped elsewhere: the Chief and Akatsuki sighed.

"My, my. What an impatient child."

"Even Acid has limits to his patience, hakase~…"

"Is that so? My, my."

"Now… Could we resume the job?" The Chief sighed.

"Oh true! The job, the job. Well then. See you, Shidou – chan."

"Yes, hakase~…"

Dr. Yoiri and the Chief finally left so Akatsuki sighed and headed into the Satella Police section: he found Ryuusuke reading a document and seemed to be puzzled.

"What's up, Ryuusuke?"

"Ah. Akatsuki. Well. I found this tossed in the yard. It says… "From the abyss"… What do you make out of it?"

"Abyss? Hmmm… Abyss, abyss… The ocean…? Ah! Maybe it's a manifesto from Hyde… That he's coming out… From the ocean's abyss… That is, from that mobile behemoth…" He deduced.

"Hum. I see. Problem is… We don't know where he'll strike."

"No. But issue a general warning and increase Wave Road surveillance: we need to be ready for a quick deployment."

"Fine. I'll go arrange for it."

Ryuusuke left so Akatsuki sat in front of his desk and began to put an order to the folders with documents atop it: he found an envelope having a letter so he opened it and found what seemed to be a childish drawing of himself and it was signed "someone": he frowned.

"Hey… Guys. Who placed this here?"

"Huh? This…? Dunno. Maybe the cleansing staff found it on the ground and thought it was yours?" One Commando suggested.

"Could be, yet… Who'd bother to do this? Not Jack… And I don't think Gonta's responsible either… Maybe it's a prank by the escapee duo to begin with…"

"We better check logs and start a security analysis."

"Do so. They could've placed a virus or something."

"Trouble?" Queen Tia asked: she'd been sitting in another desk and working with a computer.

"Could be. We don't have enough evidence yet."

"Hmmm… I'm not sure why but that of "abyss" bothers me… As if it had another meaning to it… A cliff? Or a canyon? Maybe it's a valley?"

"Now that you mention it… It could be the case, too."

"Maybe in Austria? Hyde's from there, after all."

"Let's send a message to the Vienna branch to be on the lookout."

"Shidou. Mail from Dr. Yoiri."

"What is it this time?"

"Swan Steak."

"Swan Steak? Is there such a thing?"

"I cannot find a match. Maybe she's mixing up rib steak and _Swam Lake_."

"Guess she saw Utagai – san and got the idea from there."

"Huff. Talk about one thing we could live without." Queen Tia muttered.

"Indeed!"

"By the way… Akatsuki… Was Virus Daemon in league with that Anaya woman?"

"Which of them?"

"Sorry?"

"Anaya Maria, the "Ice Queen", or Anaya Sofia, the woman who kept you hostage and impersonated you?"

"They're sisters?" She gasped.

"Cousins. But they never got along to begin with. Sofia was planning on replacing Maria and screw her, anyway."

"Alright. So… Virus Daemon…"

"Daemon was an agent of Maria."

"Like Vadous?"

"Yeah. But this one was always evil to begin with."

"And what about Sofia?"

"He wasn't involved with her. He tried to defeat her but failed."

"She was a real sadist."

"Never doubted that. But Maria was an even worse sadist."

"I know. And was way more maddening. Did she brainwash her victims?"

"As far as we know… no."

"Then that was a trait of her… Or she only did it on my case?"

"Yeah. At first she brainwashed you into being her maid in a house she secretly owned. Then she did that other brainwash…"

"Ah! So I wasn't brainwashed in that horrible manner for all this time but only for a few months… Better being a maid than what she had me go through… The damned woman!"

"I know. But at least now she's rotting in jail."

"Serves the bitch well. Making up that tale about my past too…!"

"Yeah. To try to "justify" why she was targeting Hibiki…"

"And add another victim to her roster…! Those 2 are MADWOMEN! For real!" Queen Tia cursed.

"Let's hope they rot in the brig." A female Commando muttered.

"And that woman dared to fool us all… What a villain! Anyway! Let's not lower the guard: we don't know what can happen!"

10:10 AM (Taiwan Time)…

"… And thus the court ruled over the plebeians!"

"Hyde~… Playing nobleman won't help you win, ya know?"

"Silence!"

"Fine, fine."

Hyde was acting inside of a wide and mostly empty metallic room while Phantom looked on, resigned: a Real Wave screen displayed several pictures of Vienna and its historic buildings.

"Ah! A grand city embellished by its civilization!"

"Huh? I fail to see the point, if there's any."

"You be quiet, disgraced actor!"

"Former Mu military, man. How many times do I need to say it? 20 billion times?" He sighed.

"Hmpf! Like I care."

"Fine. But don't then blame me for your failures."

"Hmpf! Mere bad luck! The Goddess of Luck will smile at me one of these days! I can foresee it! Grand and endless power: invincibility! Mwah, hah, hah, hah!"

"Won't do much good if they can undo our Denpa – Henkan whenever they want to, mind ya."

"Hmpf! I'll destroy their damned toys!"

"They can always make new ones."

"What! I thought they were limited stock of Mu artifacts!"

"They're BASED on Mu artifacts but they're modern stuff! I told ya about 6 times already but… No~… You wouldn't listen to me! Will you listen?"

"Hmpf! Whatever!" He played the unimpressed.

"Reality distortion field alone won't help ya win. And even Shinobi has his limits to what he can improve. He seems to have exhausted all the books he uses as reference."

"What! I thought they were endless sources of arts!"

"Sources of arts? Don't you mean knowledge?"

"Fighting is not knowledge!"

"A brawl isn't but Shinobi needs some knowledge to know how to move and how to use the sword…"

"SHINOBI~!"

"Y-you called, Hyde – sama?" Shinobi quickly rushed in.

"You told me those books were endless sources of arts!"

"Did I?"

"You didn't: Hyde and his reality distortion field again." Phantom cleared up for him.

"Huh… What's my mission?" He tried to ask.

"Mission? Hmmm… That's it! Fear!"

"What kind of fear?"

"Infiltrate the Taiwan Prime Minister's residence and leave a note there: it'll make them shudder in fear! Knowing that no cops or Wizards can stop someone from intruding! I'm a gallant genius!"

"I wonder about that…" Shinobi muttered under his breath.

"Huh? Did you say - SOMETHING?"

"N-no, my Lord! Do I wait for the night?"

"Indeed! It'll leave a stronger impression!"

"By your will! I'll go train!"

"Do so! Mwah, hah, hah! See, you disgraced actor! This is my knowledge!"

"It hardly is."

"WHAT?"

"It's a random idea. There's no planning. Just something you thought of right here and right now." Phantom detailed.

"Hmpf! Go poison Laertes!"

"Stop with your Hamlet parodies already, man. Shakespeare would get annoyed if he could hear you."

"YIKES!" He gasped in fear.

"Huh-oh." Shinobi gulped as if he feared a bad outcome.

" _Chii_?" Assassin suddenly appeared.

"No, there's no blood today either!"

" _Onoree… Gunjinmee~…_ "

"What? "Damn you, you damned military!"… That's what you said, no? Cursing me won't lead anywhere, ya know."

" _Chee_!"

Assassin flew off and Shinobi grumbled under his breath as he gave chase: Phantom exited the room while Hyde was cursing under his breath in German from the sounds of it.

"I wonder why I haven't gone mad already." He grimly muttered to himself.

"I wonder that myself." Shinobi admitted with a sigh of defeatism and exasperation.

"You know the guy… Wait a while and it'll eventually come back…"

"I know. Do you think Hyde – sama's idea is good or not?"

"Hmmm… Maybe he's underestimating the security, even. You'd do well to check it out from afar and try to get an estimated idea of how powerful it actually is…" Phantom suggested.

"Sounds logical."

"By the might of my ancestors!" Hyde suddenly exclaimed.

"What now?" Both sighed.

"I've had a brilliant idea!"

"Crap."

"I will become the Duke of Vienna! Duke Hyde! Heh… Heh, heh, heh… Nyah, hah, hah, wah, hah, hah, hah!" He suddenly burst into one of his psychotic laughter episodes.

"Lovely."

"I'll show these barbarians what civilization is really about!"

"Hyde~… Cool it down, man."

"Be quiet, you mutant tabloid proxy!"

"Mutant? Bravo. Patent it." He sarcastically shot back.

"Don't need to! Now get out of my sight! I need sublime and cultured inspiration! Come, Wagner, Mozart! Inspire me with your sublime masterworks!" He laughed.

Both ran off just as a piece of classical music began to echo all across the metallic interiors: they rushed into a sound-proof chamber and Shinobi closed the door: he sighed in relief along with Phantom.

"One of these days one of those seabed listening systems will pick off the acoustic waves exiting through the hull…" He sighed.

"And they could know where we are?"

"Yeah. Seems like this thing was built to be quiet while moving but it's a metal, after all. Sound waves easily propagate all across the hull and into the exterior. Maybe it's going to attract fishes, even."

"If only Hyde – sama didn't have these obsessions…"

"I know, man. Life would a billion times easier."

"Huff. At least we built this room to escape from that. And here I can properly meditate. If they need me then they call me through the Hunter – VG, anyway."

"I know."

"Oh well. I'm gonna train a bit and then go check the Prime Minister's place. At least it's not as stupid as ordering me to search the Shiisaa Island's castle basement because there's no such basement." He rolled his eyes.

"I know. And I had to bear with some women tourists who were trying to hook me but I only had to play deaf to shake them off. And Assassin was behaving stubbornly too. Hmpf. Women… Got on interest on 'em… I seek more amusing preys…" He muttered.

"Guess that. Don't forget that despite I'm supposed to be a "man" in terms of look and behavior… I'm a Denpa Body. So "sex" has no meaning to me. Since we're made of energy."

"Ah. Guess that. My bad. I bored ya with useless talk."

"Don't mind it, man. At least it's better than dealing with Hyde and his craziness."

"Of course."

"Shinobi! Know this! You will play piano for me!" Hyde called out through the Hunter – VG.

"E~H?" He gasped in disbelief.

"Oh come on. Hyde. Did you forget tonight's mission already?"

"Huh? Ah? Eh? Ah! Crap! Damned barbarians: making me forget!"

"No – one's to blame save for you! Hyde! Be rational!"

"Don't need to! I'm a super grand noble genius! Mwah, hah, hah, hah!"

"I'm so gonna go MAD." Shinobi groaned.

"Join the club. Man. Someone shower the guy in cold water!"

10:44 AM (Japan Time)…

"… Sadly enough, _aibou_ … No – one's dropped by Orihime's hideout anymore… I think they realized it was too obvious of a place so they stopped using it altogether…"

"Hum. I see."

"I searched those tunnels underneath that abbey in Normandy but found nothing out of place. Nothing on the foreign military base or in that basement where Kuroban had had a lab…"

"Of course. He's picked some good spot."

"Dealer hideout was empty and dusty. So was "Bonds", the space station parked in orbit around Mars."

"Obviously…"

Tabuu and Vadous were talking in the command bridge and Tabuu was telling him the result of his searches.

"Akatsuki contacted me and reported they found nothing odd or out of place in the whole building so it'd seem that that letter by those 2 was but a ruse to make them think so. Maybe they were hoping to tire them out by having them search the place."

"Could be."

"Warning! Warning!" Alarms suddenly rang out.

"Black Ace: status report!"

"Unidentified radar signatures detected on Moon orbit. They seem to be parking and making up a formation there. Accessing database… Match found…" The computer reported.

"Don't tell me that…" Tabuu seemed to have a hunch.

"20 signatures belong to Orbital Ship class objects… 1 signature belongs to Flagship class object…"

"I knew it! Kuroban! Damn it! He's recreated my spatial fleet!"

"Same one I used as well… But there were no spares so… He's found a planet to use to build them…" Tabuu muttered.

"Warning. Ships on approach course."

"Deploy the Energy Bubble!"

"Affirmative. Bubble: on."

"Start loading the spires!"

"Roger."

"And analyze the signals exchanged between them too."

"Roger. Beginning analysis…"

"Oops. Jamming…" Tabuu grumbled.

"Devil. Let's try to increase the power from my antenna. Do you copy, WAXA?"

"We copy! Signal's pretty bad, though!" The Chief replied between some bursts of jamming.

"More power!"

"Better now. So Kuroban's gotten serious at last?"

"So it'd seem."

"Listen, Earthlings! I am Luxaar, Leader Luxaar! I lead the "Growth"! And today we shall rule this backwater planet! My soldiers will soon land across major cities! I've got a huge army of 127.600 soldiers! Plus 1.800 fighter spaceships! And my 21 orbital ships! And my 7.200 hover tanks as well! Starting to feel the despair? Good! Despair more!"

"Kuroban, the…! He copied my numbers!"

"Hmpf. So he's recycling what I did. How original."

"No diplomacy and nothing will stop us! Your precious "defenders" are scattered across the world! By the time they organize everything will be ruled by us!"

"Sadly… That's true. We just noticed the guy sent fake emails with my name to ALL Denpa – Henkan users save for Blood and Sigma and they're scattered across the world. I'm trying to get contact with them but it'd seem there actually were jammers hidden _outside_ the building. We got obsessed with combing the insides and didn't think of searching the outside… Problem is… There's countless amounts of Viruses of all types out there and I alone can't deal with them all!" Akatsuki grumbled as he explained the status.

"By all the… The bastard got us!" Vadous grumbled.

"Guess it's time to throw stealth over the board."

"Oh yeah. Problem is… 150 of those damned TIE wannabes are already surrounding the HQ and are waiting for an opening to attack us. But at least I altered the bubble and the spears to share frequency so the spear projects waves into the bubble and the bubble itself fires instead of having to form an opening… So that gives us advantage. Once we take those out I could go fight the enemy ships directly while you guys take care of the surface…"

"Alright. I'm still trying to coordinate somehow with the other branches so that they can warn the DH users that they need to regroup here. Tabuu: can't you come and use your power to wipe some of these and make an opening so that I can come out and fight?"

"Delighted. Are they very strong?"

"No. They're all V1."

"Fine. How many are there?"

"666."

"Huff. Kuroban. The guy sure loves to laugh at others."

"Yeah. Anyway… Go, Tabuu. I'll manage things up here."

"Roger. I'll open a line with you as well just in case."

"Good."

He warped out while Vadous brought up some screens and one displayed a graphic of Omega's body and its circuitry.

"New program installation is at 48%... It still needs another 10 minutes to finish installation… Once it's done I'll activate him. At least this emergency status should make him focus on the job to do." He muttered.

"Boss? A report from Kir Osh… The satellite had nothing. So the whole Brazil thing was a dead end to begin with." Lartes came in.

"No wonder. Blood, Sigma! Report your status."

"We're on one of the VR rooms: we finished a simulation. What do we do, Boss?"

"You guys stand by. You never know: we might be boarded. Better have a backup ready."

"Roger."

"Storm, Miles. You guys be ready for a sortie. I might send you to support Akatsuki and Tabuu."

"Gotcha."

"Futaba and Kiboyama. Have the Hunter – VGs and the "Denpa Barrier" programs at hand."

"Understood."

"Kir Osh: make sure the safety system on all docking bays is working as usual and there's no weird device or software. Perform an EVA and check the outer shell as well."

"Roger that."

"Dragon…"

"The everlasting flow of time and its blessed peace which…" A polite voice began to calmly narrate.

"… Whatever. Don't burn the rice." He rolled his eyes and seemed to give up trying to explain anything on the spot.

"Master Confucius one said that "one pebble may shift the course of a grand river" and such…"

"… Are you aiming to - ANNOY ME?" He icily hissed with a hint of anger to his voice.

"N-n-no, s-s-sir." "Dragon" began to utter: he was obviously afraid of the change of tone in Vadous' voice.

"Then remain there and don't do anything stupid! Over!"

He fumed and then glanced at the information screens.

"Heck. Now it's 280 bees waiting to sting me." He grumbled.

"Charging of spears: completed."

"Good. But let's not use it… yet. Let's make them get confident: they might do something stupid." He decided.

" _Aibou_? I managed to wipe out about 200 of them. Akatsuki has joined me and we're somehow managing. I'm trying to focus attacks on me because they're rendered powerless by my armor."

"Alright. Keep it up. Also, Akatsuki… Better not mention this too much: if we could conceal Tabuu's presence that could be useful to lure either Hyde or the escapee duo into a trap."

"OK. Let's hope Kuroban isn't monitoring what's going on here. Maybe he's too confident that he's managed to render us powerless." Acid Ace calmly replied.

"Aha. Damn. New York, Washington, Tokyo, Beijing, Berlin, London, Paris, Rome, Moscow, El Cairo, Cape Town, Melbourne, New Delhi… They've all been invaded." He cursed.

"Huff. Today's going to be one of those long and endless days. I've got that hunch, man." Acid Ace sighed.

"Same here… Let's finish wasting time here and go all out!"

"Alright, Kuroban… You'll regret pissing us off!"


	8. Chapter 8: Scattered

**Chapter 8: Scattered**

11:11 AM (Japan Time)…

"… Buro~! I still dunno why Akatsuki – san told us to search Kiso Valley: why would anyone hide here?"

"Hmpf! Gonta! 'Cause no – one would think of it!"

"Oh yeah? Guess that."

"Get the food outta your head and search! The mail said that there's been someone suspicious near the mountaintop _onsen_!"

"I'm doing that, man!"

"Well! Search better!"

"Easier said than done! I'd like to have a bath on the _onsen_ but it doesn't smell too nice… And it's used to make black eggs, anyway!"

Ox Fire was discussing with Ox (materialized next to him) as they investigated a foggy mountain which had a large _onsen_ on it: some metallic containers were placed there and a sign told about the tradition of making boiled black eggs.

"Oi! Is there anyone here~?"

"Buro~! Doesn't seem to. Maybe near the parking and the viewing platform instead?" Ox suggested.

"Could be. Oi~! Satella Police here~! I've come to help!" He called out.

There was no reply so he began to head down the mountain but he was suddenly and silently surrounded by about 60 Heel Wizards who had water guns as weapons: they all chuckled in an evil manner.

"Oh shit." Ox Fire cursed.

"Don't let 'em scare 'em! Beat 'em!"

"E-easier said than done, man!"

"Heh, heh, heh! DELETE~!"

11:18 AM (Japan Time)…

"… Buku! I dunno why I gotta search this wreck!"

"Buku! Acid said there were bad guys here!"

"Bad guys? Heh! I'll beat 'em to a pulp!"

"Don't get cocky, Hasami! Buku!"

"Heh, heh, heh! I'm going to be ascended!"

"There are no ranks! Buku!"

"Heh, heh, heh! Come out, you bad guys! I'll wash you over with my waves! Heh, heh, heh!"

"Oh man."

Cancer Bubble was investigating what seemed to be an underground base which was largely unlit: some doors were open revealing quarters, storage spaces, restrooms and other things but all was dusty and looked abandoned to begin with: the fluorescent lights in the ceiling had shattered and some shards still remained in the ground of the rooms and the corridor.

"Heh, heh, heh! Come out! I'm an ally of justice!"

"Says the guy! Buku! Ya stole some Bargain Battle Cards the other day around! Buku! When are ya gonna apologize for that? Buku!"

"Bah! I needn't!"

"What a stubborn guy! Buku!"

"Heh, heh, heh, heh!"

"Huh? Wha!"

Like with Ox Fire, a horde of Heel Wizards surrounded him and they brandished their trademark electrical whips: Cancer Bubble began to sweat and gulped.

"DE~LE~TE~!"

11:21 AM (Japan Time)…

"… Au~h! Where are the graffiti rascals? I'm so gonna make them fear painting graffiti!"

"Oi, Juurou… Are you sure this is the place?"

"Sure thing! Akatsuki said so!"

"Huh… Guess that, but…"

"This warehouse reeks of chemical stuff! The spray cans!"

"Guess that. Remember that we can't smell to begin with."

"I know! Grrr… Come out, you rascals!"

Wolf Forest talked with Wolf as he searched the insides of a warehouse somewhere: Wolf was unsure but Wolf Forest was confident and had his claws drawn: he was looking around and spotted some drums with the label "WARNING: HIGHLY FLAMMABLE" on them so he ignored those and searched a badly locked crate.

"Aha-hah! See, man! Oil-based spray cans! What's more: the labels say "graffiti forever!" and that's what they sprayed on that luxury mansion's outer walls!" He exclaimed.

"Hum. So it'd seem the info was correct."

"Which means that… The rascals must be cowering close by! Come out if you're real men and face me!"

"You can't fight unarmed humans in this form, remember."

"I know! I'm just challenging them to come out!" Wolf Forest shrugged.

A bunch of Heel Wizards armed with "Dabia Flame" Battle Cards appeared and surrounded him: some of them aimed for the drums as well and Wolf Forest grumbled under his breath.

"Damn. Talk about an insect flying into a summer fire!" He drew his claws.

"Heh, heh, heh! TO DELETE~! DELETIO~NNNNN!"

11: 24 AM (Japan Time)…

"… Hum… I wonder why anyone would hide here of all places… It's on the midst of an abandoned mine… Full of dust too… By my royal blood! There's something in here: I've got that hunch!"

Crown Thunder was exploring the corridors of a mine and muttering aloud as he tried to find if there was anything or anyone there.

"Akatsuki told me that there were some odd folk here and that they were surely up to no good but… Huh? What's this? Hum…"

He stumbled upon an old room that contained some wooden tables and benches plus a printed map of the mines: there also were some consumed candles set inside of glasses: other stuff included writing in the walls: Crown Thunder began to check the room.

"Hmmm… Looks pretty old… Guess no – one's used it ever since the mine closed because it partially flooded and was no longer economical… I'm going to check further in. Huff. It's at times like these when I'd like for that Denpa Body to talk."

He suddenly heard some faint echoing whispering so he quickly rushed down some corridors and checked when he reached the corners: he eventually reached another room that had a rusted speaker set on the ceiling and a voice was whispering through it.

"… And that's why we must get "it" to overcome the phenomenon space!"

"Phenomenon space? "It"?" Crown Thunder wondered.

"Oho… So there's someone like that… Interesting… It might be worth it to follow that suggestion…"

"Suspicious…"

The Heel Wizards swiftly flew in and they had Seed Machine Gun Battle Cards equipped so Crown Thunder cursed.

"Devil and damnation!"

"Go to Hell!"

11:27 AM (Japan Time)…

"… H-hey… Cygnus… Is this really the place?"

"Yes, it is. It was written in Akatsuki's email."

"S-somebody must want to pull a hideous prank!"

"Maybe so."

"You're not nervous, C-Cygnus?"

"No, Utagai… And stop making your teeth dance. Will you?"

"W-well, t-that's… Hum…"

"Huff."

Cygnus Wing was trembling as he talked with Cygnus and investigated the "Cybernetics" of the main device in the Amaken Zero Gravity simulator: Cygnus was trying to calm him down somehow.

"The mail said that there was a tip-off about Kuroban's accomplice, Hikaru, lurking around here."

"But… How?"

"Sheesh. He can do Denpa – Henkan too, Utagai."

"Ah! I s-see! Yikes! Must be really malefic demon!"

"Stop being SO superstitious and be realistic for a change."

"I'm s-sorry! But you know I'm very timid!" He apologized.

"I know that. Now, will you focus on the mission or not?"

Cygnus Wing gulped and reached the control panel for the screens: he saw nothing out of place but wouldn't stop trembling and constantly turning around as if expecting someone to sneak into him.

"H-hello~?"

There was a series of roars and a legion of berserk Wizards colored grey surrounded him while drawing swords and cannons…

11:30 AM (Japan Time)…

"Be~! Some criminals are lurking inside of this forest, huh? I'm going to deliver some _Kung – Fu_ kicks and punches to them!"

"Don't get too confident, Kenta…"

"Don't worry! Be~!"

"I DO worry. Because you tend to get too confident from time to time, Kenta!"

Goat Kung – Fu was talking with Goat as he made his way through a forest somewhere and following a barely visible path which seemed to lead further into the forest.

"I've got a hunch that there's some hidden hut!"

"Maybe."

"Don't be so skeptical! It's cool to think like that: that you're experiencing something new and cool…" He chuckled.

"Yes, yes. Can we continue?"

"Of course, of course… Oh! See! I told you! A hut!"

"Talk about a curious coincidence."

He stumbled upon a small wooden hut and grinned as he entered inside but found it to be dusty and devoid of any furniture: the door suddenly shut and the sound of a key being turned rang out before it became silent again: the windows were boarded up from the inside and there was no chimney: the walls looked thick.

"Man. Guess I'll have to kick the door open. Someone's stupid prank, I guess. Huff." He sighed.

"That's why I said that…"

Goat didn't get to finish because the Heel Wizards appeared and were equipped with Machine Flame Battle Cards: Goat Kung – Fu turned white on the spot and tried to get into a combat stance to fight back…

11:33 AM (Japan Time)…

"… Huh? Who goes there?"

"Whoa! Calm down, Rock Man! It's me!"

"Harp Note… Sorry. I thought it was the enemy."

"This is the place, right?"

"Burai. You got called here too?"

"Yeah. By Akatsuki. Same as you guys, no?"

"Yeah… A report by Cepheus said that suspicious figures have been coming in and out as of late…"

Rock Man had been exploring the Black Hole Server: he suddenly aimed at one spot but it turned out to be Harp Note: Burai soon joined them and they began to talk.

"Alright. I'll be point." Rock Man got serious.

"Fine. Leave the back to me."

"I'll cover the flanks." Harp Note nodded.

The group silently made their way deeper in: they found a Wave Road that formed a descending ramp to a lower level and they reached a gigantic black spheroid with many tubes protruding from its lower body and spreading in several directions.

"Reminds me of Meteor G's core, even." Rock Man muttered.

"Guess this is the Black Hole Server's core, then. And it must work as engines as well." Burai guessed.

"So that's how Sirius moved this thing…" Harp Note deduced.

"But how did he steal the Mu Metal to begin with?"

"Sent one of his pawns to do the job." Burai grumbled.

"One of the "R" Wizards, huh? I see. And back then…"

"I know. I made that act up to have an excuse to battle you and check out if this time around you were ready to stop the threat."

"There are two roads that circle the engines and join again behind it to then split into three and they end in Warp Points." Harp Note spotted.

"Guess we'll have to split. Maintain radio channels open and don't lower the guard. We don't know what'll come out."

They all headed into a different Warp Point: Rock Man got warped to another square and came face to face with Queen Virgo "R": she silently swung the staff and formed a "Hydro Dragon": Rock Man quickly shot it and drew a Drill Arm X Battle Card.

 _Die Walkenkratzer erobem den vor Stemen glitzemden Himmel… Wir laufen durch die Häuserschlucht, damit wir echtes Licht nicht verlieren… Unsere verletzten Herzen verschwinden in der Finsternis… Wir sind wie verschneite Spurem in Schnee… Wir sind wie wirbelnde Blätter im Wind…_

"What the heck? A German song?" He wondered.

He'd managed, in the meanwhile, to score a Counter Hit and was attacking with a Mad Vulcan X Battle Card followed by a Plasma Gun X.

 _The time has come… Wir hören tick tack… Die Uhr tickt… Die Reise in die Zukunft… Tick tack, die Urh tickt… The time has come… Wir hören tick tack… Die Uhr tickt… In leichthem Licht fliegen wir zu dir…_

"Eat this too! And this! Heck!"

 _Wir schlagen den Himmel wie ein Mattglas ein, weil er dich in deinem Zimmer einspertt… Wir fliegen im Sternenhimmel Hand in Hand, weil wir Kämpfer für die Freiheit sind…_

"Huff! Stubborn! Noise Change! Burai Noise! Dancing Blade X!"

 _Wir schlagen den Spiegel, in dem sich der Himmel verzertt… Wir fliegen im Sternenhimmel Hand in Hand, weil wir Kämpfer für die Freiheit sind… Du auch…_

"It's ended? Fine! Now I can focus! The finishing blow! Samurai Blade X!"

Rock Man managed to bring down the revived enemy and panted as he quickly scanned the surroundings.

"Rock Man? Are you alright?" Harp Note asked.

"Somehow…!"

"I managed to beat Empty…"

"Hmpf. I had to beat Apollon Flame."

"Guess Cepheus' report was right and the "suspicious figures" were either Kuroban or Hikaru who'd come arrange for this. Yet… I find it to be too much of a coincidence…"

"Yeah. 3 Warp Points, 3 rooms, 3 enemies… Almost as if they knew beforehand that the 3 of us would be coming…" Burai was suspicious of the whole deal.

"Can't say that the song wasn't bad, though. It helped shake off the dread of this place." Harp Note commented.

"It had some English mixed in, too… Guess it's a modern German song that must be popular…"

"Guess so. I don't tend to pay attention to popular songs because I don't want to be tempted to imitate them."

"That asides… This reeks. I've tried to send an email but I got an error message. I think something's happened in the Satella Police." Burai warned them.

"Another reason to get the hell outta here NOW. The sooner the better, really!" Rock Man fumed.

"Not so fast… Ya gotta sweat more!"

"That voice! Hikaru!"

"Yo~! Been a while, Hoshikawa~! But now I am Eisei Aaron – sama! A cool macho guy! Heh!" Hikaru laughed.

"Like I care."

"Man. You're not fun anymore."

"Hmpf."

"Did ya have a hot night with that punk over there~?"

"How dare you!" Burai growled.

"Speak for yourself. You're a sucker." Rock Man taunted.

"HMPF!" He tried to play the unimpressed.

"Come out and face me if you've the GUTS."

"I'd LOVE to but _aibou_ won't let me. And if I don't do as the guy says then I get my DH program locked. But I've got THESE!"

A swarm of Heel Wizards, Berserk Wizards and Viruses of all kinds surrounded them all of a sudden.

"Struggle, struggle AND STRUGGLE~!"

"Damned bastard." Burai growled.

"Let's fight them back! Hah!"

"Shock Note!"

"Laplace Swing!"

The enemies were easily defeated but more and more kept on generating beyond their reach: Hikaru chuckled loud enough to be heard and to taunt the 3 fighters.

"Yeah… That's it… Experience powerless and despair! Fake saviors!"

"Hell. We gotta find a way out and NOW. My Mega and Giga Cards have been locked so I can't use that ace in the hole. And I can't rise my Noise level either, too! What damned cowards!" Rock Man cursed.

"Same over here…! Huff, huff… Eat this! Plasma Grenade X!"

"Not enough, you bastards? Have more of this blade! Hah! Hyah! Hrah!"

"Heh, heh, heh… Despair… Despair… DESPAIR…! AND DIE~!"

11:45 AM (Japan Time)…

"… No good! I still can't contact them! And these damned Viruses are getting reinforcements the whole time!"

"Fuck."

"Even with Storm and Miles helping us out… It's getting tiring!"

"Guess I'll use the emergency plan."

"Deploy Omega?"

"Security scan finished: there are no abnormalities. I'll set some parameters so that he focus on the matter at hand. Sigma is trying to locate the origin of these Viruses reinforcements and Blood is here as a defense backup."

Acid Ace, Tabuu, Storm and Miles were fighting the hordes of enemies surrounding the WAXA Japan Satellite Branch building: more kept on coming before they could take the whole of them out and they were starting to get tired.

"I'll risk something else too… Step back!"

"Roger!"

The group quickly recoiled until the RW shield defending the main entrance door: some greenish streaks of lightning fell down from the sky and impacted the yard: they spread by splitting into thinner and smaller streaks and mere contact with one of them made them coil around the bodies of the attackers quickly deleting them: a lot of them were wiped out and the defenders quickly rushed in.

"Wing Blade!"

"Cosmo Sword!"

"Volt Sphere!"

"Lance Impact!"

"I'll shoot another discharge… I'll make them invisible so turn on the IR!"

"Roger that!"

Another attack rained down and more enemies were deleted: the group took a moment to sigh in relief and then got serious again: the enemies stopped coming, however.

"I found the origin, Boss!"

"Where was it?"

"The Crimson Machine on Dealer hideout."

"Weird. I did check it." Tabuu muttered.

"Kuroban must've waited until you left to use it."

"Ah. Of course."

"Sadly enough I had to reveal this method but… Wait. Maybe we can disguise it as an ability Storm has…"

"Let's do so."

"Are you alright, Shidou – chan?" Dr. Yoiri asked.

"For now!"

"It'd seem the invading enemies have taken over the main government buildings and are holding several high-level military staff and some hi-level politics hostage. They don't seem to demand anything as of yet. But their defense is tight. And with the top unable to issue commands, the chain of command is in chaos. No – one wants to assume the responsibility of counter – attacking." The Chief reported.

"What about the DH users?"

"No good. Their devices are jammed."

"Fuck. They could be anywhere."

"One witness saw Utagai come to Amaken…" Ryuusuke reported as he'd seemingly come in.

"Our lab?" Amachi Mamoru wondered.

"Send one or two officers there to check it out!"

"Alright."

"Hmmm… I've thought of a plan… Wait a min. I'll strengthen the encoding and talk directly to you 4 to avoid the others listening in… There might be an insider for all we know."

"OK."

"Good. The plan is this: the drop ships are empty now and are going to be recalled to their ships. So each of you will board a different one and hide inside until it reaches the orbital ship. Once inside you should go find the main engine and DISABLE it. Not destroy it. It'll be enough with turning on the emergency stop switch. Once you confirm that it's disabled then I'm going to warp it elsewhere. That ship will be unable to move anymore after that." Vadous whispered.

"Hmmm… It's risky. But it could work. Yet that would take 4 ships at the most, no?"

"Yeah. But at least that should cause some confusion. And I might be able to swap their IFF beacons so that the other ships automatically attack them: then I can attack then myself and disable them with a powerful EMP pulsation."

"And what'll you do then?"

"We'll board the mother ship and face Kuroban."

"Good."

"Say that you found leads to the whereabouts of the other DH users and that you need to go into radio silence to find them. I'll keep the others updated."

"Wouldn't it be faster to use a portal?" Tabuu suggested.

"Would've done that if possible but there are jammers disrupting the frequencies the portal operates on."

"Hum. Can't be helped, then. We'll have to use that method instead."

"I'll assign a ship to each one… Akatsuki: Tokyo. Tabuu: New York. Storm: Cape Town. Miles: Paris."

"Roger that."

The four of them dispersed: Acid Ace rushed into the Cosmo Wave and quickly headed for the direction of Tokyo: he stopped to look towards the moon for a second and then continued until he descended on a spot not so far from Tokyo where several UFO-shaped ships with four hangers built inside (and which were empty) were parked there: he turned invisible and got onboard one just as the hangers' shutters descended.

"I'm in." He whispered.

"Good. The others will take another bit because they have more distance to cover."

"What about those orbital ships? Have they moved?"

"No. They're parked slightly past the Moon but they're about 200.000 km from Earth. These surface deployment ships reach a tenth of the speed of light. So they should cover that distance in less than 10 seconds." Vadous whispered back next.

"Pretty fast!" He muttered.

"Yeah. Remember. DISABLE them."

"Of course."

"Good. I'll pretend I can't do anything and make Kuroban get confident: we must try to pretend his tactics don't impress us."

"So that's the plan. Good. What will we do about the robots and the tanks in the cities, though?"

"I can hijack their control signal and issue an emergency retreat order outside of the cities: then we can destroy them."

"Excellent."

"But I can't guarantee that 100%."

"If not we can always lure them out, no?"

"Yeah. If there's no other way to, then… I contacted Cepheus and the Satellite Admins but they're busy dealing with Viruses there as well which come from the Noise Wave linking the Planet FM surroundings and the Outer Space Wave Roads that the "Bonds" expedition set up." Vadous reported.

"Good. Ah. We've arrived, it'd seem."

"The ship's insides should be deserted but use stealth nevertheless: we don't want to be seen by some security camera."

"Roger that."

Acid Ace snuck outside and inwardly gasped since he was inside of a large hanger which had 2 row of 10 ships stored across its length: he focused and rushed towards the back of the ship: he crossed a couple of open armored doors and reached the engine room: a cylinder about 2 meters tall colored black was placed on the middle of it and some wires and pipes exited it and linked to another spheroid which in turn controlled three large pipes set in a triangle formation.

"Look for the emergency switch. It's red."

"Red… Here! Hah!"

Acid Ace examined a control console and found a red switch covered by a glass case and with the label "EMERGENCY STOP": he pressed it and the cylinder hummed until the bluish glow of the room stopped: all became silent.

"Good. Ship is halted. It'd seem the others have succeeded as well."

"Earthlings! I have news for you lot… News that will you make further despair and powerlessness!" Kuroban's voice echoed.

"The guy's transmitting in an open channel… Is indeed on the mother ship: as I thought!" Vadous grumbled.

 _What are those "news"? Maybe it's a bluff? Got a bad feeling about that!_


	9. Chapter 9: Unexpected turn

**Chapter 9: Unexpected turn**

11:58 AM (Japan Time), Saturday January the 26th…

"… You will now feel further hopeless and despair! Witness this live feed which I'm emitting. You can easily trace it to the source and you can see that it's indeed in live and not pre-recorded!"

"Get to the point already."

Acid Ace was still standing in the engine room and seeing a holographic screen that showed nothing but blackness: Kuroban's voice rang out from somewhere off-screen.

"This is a black curtain. When I pull it… And you see what's behind it, then… You will despair. "Abandon all hope, ye who enter here!"… You are entering here through your eyes. And you will abandon all hope!"

"Just show us already. It's gotta be some weapon. But we can always take it out." He grumbled under his breath.

The curtain slowly opened and some floodlights turned on to reveal what was behind it: both Acid Ace and Acid gasped in disbelief.

"T-that's…! Impossible!"

"Witness!"

The imagery now showed Rock Man, Harp Note and Burai (seemingly unconscious) tied to black x-shaped wooden crosses through restrains on their wrists and ankles.

"Your so-called "saviors" are WEAK! POWERLESS to STOP our MIGHT!"

"I'm sure you used some cheat to begin with…! They're not the types that would get caught so easily…!" Acid Ace grumbled.

"News from Cepheus! It'd seem those 3 had gone into the Black Hole Server and were not seeing coming out. Guess there was an ambush or something there: maybe something like what was happening to you: being assaulted by never-ending hordes! They must've run out of physical strength." Vadous growled over the line.

"Where the fuck is the rascal?"

"Behind the Moon!"

"What a coward! Hiding instead of showing his face."

"Yeah, I know! Feels like a repeat of a year ago!"

"Yeah, that "Hand of Wisdom" incident…!"

"Can't we do anything to get close?"

"Wait a minute… I've almost managed to hack into the IFF beacons so that we can have them shoot each other and…!"

Alarms rang out on the other end of the line and Vadous howled something undecipherable.

"A new fleet has come out of hyper-space!"

"A second fleet? Oh shit." Acid Ace cursed.

"Hah! Punctual indeed. Witness! My second fleet. Now I shall be able to rule over further territories! With your fake saviors in my hands, you are powerless! Soon I'll execute them as well!"

"VADOUS!"

"I'm on it! I'm trying to find a way to send you to the mother-ship without the guy noticing and…!"

The live stream imagery suddenly rocked and shook in a violent manner: some alarms and noises rang out over there.

"What the hell! Why's the second fleet mother-ship attacking me? Has the computer gone mad?" He cursed.

"Odd. The second fleet is fighting the first fleet… It's sending its surface ships towards Earth, though… Talk about strange behavior." Vadous was surprised.

"Maybe it's a ruse?"

"Could be."

"Mwah, hah, hah, hah!"

"Tee, heh, heh, heh!"

"Fuck! I know those voices!"

"I know them too!"

"Who goes there?" Kuroban demanded.

"Too bad, Kuroban! You picked the worst planet to use as base for your second fleet! We've seized it!" Kurayami announced.

"We want a slice of the cake too… And since you seem to have captured our preys along the way… We'll thank ya." Kanaya added.

"You lot! So that's why I couldn't find you!" Kuroban growled.

"Yeah! Too bad! You underestimated the "Ancient Darkness"!"

"We don't like being looked down upon!"

"Let's turn this into _Star Wars_!"

"Sure! Let's pit fleet vs fleet and see which survives!"

"I'm getting you guys out of there NOW!" Vadous whispered.

A "portal" opened in front of Acid Ace and he jumped in: the world became a purple tunnel in the midst of blackness: a force gripped his body and transported him to the other end of the tunnel to then emerge inside of the command bridge: Tabuu, Storm and Miles were there already and Vadous was sweating and trying to coordinate efforts.

"This is WAXA! We found the missing DH users but they're all gravely injured and unable to fight. They all seem to have been ambushed and attacked with tactics that exploited their elemental weaknesses!"

"Fuck. Damned Kuroban. But I won't let those 2 runaways kidnap Hibiki or Subaru, either! Full speed! We're going to use this chance to board Kuroban's mother-ship and rescue them!"

"Good!"

The bridge vibrated but they felt nothing as the ship seemingly moved: a camera's stream showed how they were approaching the Moon and they soon began to orbit it: some giant laser beams colored green, red and blue were jumping from one place to the other close by.

"There it is!"

They spotted two identical ships that had a dagger-like body (without the handle) with the engines on the rear and a diagonal turret emerging near the engines: it linked to a smaller dagger-shaped object which obviously was the command bridge.

"Our goal is the one facing forward: the one that's advancing from the left is those 2 guys' one!"

"Can you warp us there?"

"Wait a second… I need to come closer… Now! Warp!"

The "portal" opened again and the 4 of them emerged inside of the command bridge: they spotted a cube-shaped energy cage that held the 3 prisoners: there was a blackish spheroid set near the viewing Plexiglas and it looked big enough to hold a person: a nearby camera was still focused on the 3 prisoners.

"More power to these guns! Bring them DOWN!" Kuroban's voice roared through some speakers set on the spheroid.

"How paranoid. He hides inside of that." Acid Ace muttered.

"I'll drain the cage's energy. And then distract the guy. You free those 3 and bring them to the HQ." Tabuu whispered.

"Roger."

Tabuu spread his wings and the cage began to flicker as the energy silently built up around the edge of the wings to then travel across their surface: he nodded to the other 3 as he flew past the prisoners and the camera and approached the spheroid, about 2 meters tall: the others quickly broke the restrains and softly carried the unconscious trio: Tabuu began to accumulate the energy into a sphere while the others pulled out.

"Hi there. Kuroban Howsad. And bye there."

"Who the hell!"

"Apocalypse… NOW!"

Tabuu released the sphere of energy and caused a reddish shockwave that spread in all 8 directions, peeling off the walls and destroying piping and wiring underneath them: the Plexiglas also shattered but the room was already a void given how there wasn't a sudden decompression: the spheroid rattled and began to frizzle and short-circuit: some undecipherable semi-distorted yelps rang out: the crosses were blown up into shreds and so was the camera: it all soon became quiet and Tabuu calmly hovered there.

"Kzzz… Kzzz… Kzzzzz!" The spheroid was emitting bursts of static by now and it was greatly damaged.

"Now… Let's force you out of here. And fight like a man!"

He formed a golden blade over his right forearm and stabbed it into the slit formed by the spheroid's two doors like an elevator's doors: he began to force it open so he used the left hand to push the left door open as well: two attacks suddenly landed on his back.

"What?"

He turned around to see Kurayami and Kanaya there who were cursing under their breaths loud enough to be heard.

"We were SO CLOSE!" Kanaya hissed.

"Who the hell are you?" Kurayami cursed.

"Maybe you've heard me of me. Tabuu. The Nomad Emissary."

"E~H!" Both gasped.

"Stay quiet for a while: I've got business with Kuroban over here."

He suddenly formed some golden rings of energy that spread across the room and paralyzed the 2 of them on the spot.

"Now! Let's see you ugly hide, Kuroban…"

Tabuu flew inside of the spheroid but gasped: there was only a mannequin sitting on a stool and having a speaker built on its face.

"Damn it. So Kuroban wasn't actually here and was remotely speaking through this proxy."

"Hmpf! I'm not surprised." Vadous fumed.

"Gruh… Grah! What a powerful program…!"

"Shit…! Where's Kuroban!"

"Was never here. Check it out yourselves. Bye."

Tabuu warped out of the room while the other 2 rushed into the spheroid and spotted the set-up: they growled.

"Damn it all!" They cursed.

"What now?" Kurayami asked.

"Dunno!" Kanaya fumed.

"Huh? Look!"

"What!"

They looked out through the broken Plexiglas and spotted how the other ships (which had been damaged through their mutual firing) began to align and headed away from Earth: they suddenly jumped into hyper-space and both cursed under their breaths again: they warped out of there and into the hanger where they boarded a escape pod which had room for 8 plus a pilot: Kurayami sat on the pilot's seat and they ejected just before the mother ship warped into hyper-space too: they both cursed again.

"Vadous managed to take over them!"

"But, see… There are 4 of them which are immobile. Maybe they sabotaged them. We could try to restart them!" Kurayami spotted through the camera.

However, a large "portal" formed in front of her and pulled the 4 ships inside of it: they cursed again.

"Shit. Now he's going to take care of the surface army too. Included ours, which had begun to fight Kuroban's!"

"Damned bastard! I'm so eager to cut off his neck!" Kanaya hissed and clenched her right fist.

"Yeah… I totally feel like it by now!"

"Ah! Whatever. Let's go hide somewhere. Maybe the Amazon jungle will do well because it's hard to search the jungle."

"Hmmm… Nah. Let's pick a big city… Kanazawa could do."

"True. And if we feel bored we can just go to a club and have fun there: as long as we pay them good then they won't ask questions."

"What a pity, though, that that Queen Tia ended up being an imposter in the end… She was being useful to keep them on the edge."

"Yeah, I know. Oh well. Now I can have Hibiki and her pal for myself so it's not that much of a deal." Kanaya shrugged.

"Luckily this thing has a steal field too. That should help us avoid detection from Vadous." Kurayami checked the console.

"Indeed! And here we thought Fate was smiling to us because we reached Omicron and found that whole second fleet parked nearby and ready to depart. We took over it and rushed here only to end like this! That's what happens when you recycle software and stuff Vadous perfectly knows about: he can take over them!"

"Maybe he sent those back to Omicron?"

"Nah. I'm sure he sent them to a black hole to destroy them and avoid their remains piling up as space junk."

"Sheesh. We'll remember this!"

"Of course we will! Sheesh!"

16:36 PM (Japan Time)…

"… So… Lartes. What's their status?"

"They weren't too gravely injured. They just exhausted their physical strength so they're supplying them with nutrients via IV. Total rest will be needed for at least the whole of tomorrow and some of the day after tomorrow."

"What about the others?"

"Their injuries were too fatal, fortunately enough. Some burns, cuts, blows and such… They need some rest too but they'll soon be back to shape as well… What about Omega, though?"

"Didn't get to activate him in the end. I'll try later on the evening."

"Make sure to keep those 2 under custody too."

"Who? Ah. War Rock and Moon Disaster. Yeah. Of course. I won't let them start another ruckus. Not now when we're on the edge. They'd distract us too much and we'd all get pissed off again…"

Lartes was standing in the rooftop of a hospital building somewhere and talking to Vadous through the Hunter – VG: he looked a bit relieved while Vadous was calm.

"I've sent Blood and Sigma there to keep watch. Tabuu volunteered as well. That should dissuade any of the parties from taking action. But let's not let paranoia haunt us either."

"Well said."

"Akatsuki is resting at the Satella Police HQ just in case too."

"Maybe we should try to find a way to increase the DH members to be able to handle extreme situations like this?"

"Hum. Maybe Queen Tia and Jack would do. We could give them the same program Subaru uses. In Queen Tia's case we can use the one that Kanaya handed to Sofia. In Jack's case I'd have to build it from scratch but there's enough data to do it."

"Alright. Suggest it to Akatsuki and see what he thinks."

"Of course. Well. Got job to handle here so see you later."

"Later."

Lartes ended the call and sighed before heading downstairs into the building: he descended a couple floors and headed for a room guarded by two Commandos: one of them opened it and he stepped into a hospital room that had Subaru and Solo (still unconscious) lying in beds: there were a couple of nurses taking notes from the EEG device and the other devices as well.

"Is all nominal?"

"Yes, doctor."

"Alright. I'll stay here."

"Affirmative."

The nurses finished their job and left: Lartes then walked over to Subaru and looked at the EEG monitor for a few seconds before letting out a sigh with a hint of annoyance.

"Subaru. Using the chip implant to fool the EEG isn't too smart. I can detect the different in frequencies."

"… I'm sorry, Master." Subaru calmly opened his eyes.

"Why did you try to run away? What was my training for, then?"

"It's… well…" He looked away, sighing.

"Subaru. This is an order. Don't run away from me." He whispered.

"Yes, sir…" He sighed and looked at the front again.

"I don't want you to become like Omega: obsessed with failures and lashing out at everyone because you're incapable of admitting you've got your flaws and you're not invincible."

"I didn't intend to, sir… It's just that… I feel so… depressed."

"And will that make you any stronger?"

"Eh… Well…"

"It won't. Ever."

"… Understood, sir…"

"What you need to now is to rest. Until you've fully recovered. Then we'll see what we can do. This time around you alone won't make the difference, Subaru."

"… Yes, sir…"

"So behave and do as said. I don't want you to charge into things in your usual reckless manner."

"I know, sir… I won't do that, sir… But…"

"I know that you didn't do it this time around but nevertheless you guys committed a lot of mistakes."

"But…"

"No "buts". It's a fact. You didn't act rationally enough and lowered the guard. And that led to that situation."

"What situation? I don't remember anything after I collapsed in the battle…"

"Kuroban caught you guys and exposed you to a camera while boasting: and it's had a huge effect on general morale. At least we managed to free the occupied cities but that's another tale. You'll have to work harder if you want people to trust you again. Seeing you there, beaten, when they expected you to come help them… It was too much of a shock." Lartes explained with rising annoyance.

"… I… see…" He lowered his sight.

"Huff. I talk too much. Point is: you should've asked Akatsuki if the mail was true or not. And then you'd noticed the jamming. And that should've made you rise the guard. But you didn't. Why? You didn't think of it?"

"No, sir… Since Misora – chan and Solo got the same message… I thought it was logical…"

"I hope you've learnt the lesson. From now on, you will distrust all kind of emails that lead you away. You will always double-check if the sender did send that email. And this something Akatsuki has decided to add to your duties as well."

"Yes, sir… I'm such an idiot…"

"Maybe you've been a bit too _naïve_ but that doesn't matter. The past is the past, no use crying over spilled milk. From now on, though, you'll always report everything in live. Same with the other members."

"How can I apologize to the citizens?"

"We'll handle that with due time. You will be heavily criticized but you're going to act deaf. Don't fall for the provocations. Besides. There'll surely be a day in the close future when you'll be able to redeem yourself. But for the time being you're going to pretend nothing happened and do as Akatsuki in the flesh orders."

"Understood, sir…"

"It might be painful but there's no other way around. You'll have to struggle not to run out of patience. You simply ignore them. And focus on what you have to do."

"Roger, sir…"

"… Solo… Not you too. I can see by the bed's wrinkles near your neck that you've been moving the neck. And now I see that the EEG monitor displays that you're conscious." He suddenly looked at Solo.

"My bad. I suddenly woke up and didn't want to interrupt your discussion so…" He admitted.

"Huff." Lartes fumed, annoyed.

"I didn't intend to eavesdrop, really! It was a coincidence!"

"Whatever. I need some fresh air again."

Lartes stormed off the room, annoyed, and both looked surprised at his reaction.

"Odd. I'd never seen Master annoyed like that before."

"Guess it's been such a stressing day that he's finally run out of patience to bear with it." Solo suggested.

"Yeah… I still don't know the whole picture but… It'd seem a lot of trouble happened indeed…"

"My blood's boiling…! I so wanna beat that Kuroban bastard to a pulp but my body feels SO tired…! I now see why the elder warned me that using the DH for too long had bad effects to the body!"

"Huff. I remember how I ended up beaten after defeating Andromeda and once I got back to Earth I had to spend some time resting. Not to mention how I fainted after beating Ra Mu. What about you VS Empty? What happened?"

"We got nowhere. The guy was always dodging me at the last second and then ended up running away. I then got out to see what was going on and then I found you."

"And you brought me to Kodama Town."

"Yeah. By using one of those eyeballs."

"Did you really drop from the sky back when you showed up to claim the OOPArt back or…?"

"Of course not. I made it look like it but I was standing on a nearby rooftop: I just dropped a bomb."

"How ironic, huh? After all that "I hate bonds" behavior… Now we're here finally having a rational conversation."

"I know. It's just that I went by "guilt by association" until my elder scolded me. I was raised to respect anything the elder told me so I ended up reflecting for a while."

"Fortunately enough!" Subaru muttered with some irony.

"That being irony? Fine. I'm not in the mood to argue."

"So you're awake." Akatsuki suddenly came in.

"Akatsuki – san, I…"

"Apologies won't fix anything, Subaru. Let's get to the point. What happened in that damned hole?"

"We were surrounded by never-ending hordes of Viruses and Heel Wizards and we ran out of physical strength. We don't remember anything else afterwards. Save… Hikaru was there, close by. And taunting us."

"Hikaru was there, huh."

"So what happened?"

"While you and others were being fooled by fake emails… Kuroban brought a fleet and began to occupy some of the major cities. And then he exhibited you guys there, being prisoners. But we boarded the bridge and freed you just in time. Those 2 got there as well."

"Oh heck. K & K?"

"Yeah. Same folks. Tabuu forced open one spheroid where Kuroban was hiding but there actually was a mannequin with a speaker: Kuroban wasn't there to begin with. K & K picked an escape pod and we traced them to Kiso Valley until we lost track of them. They'd seemingly gone to Omicron and found Kuroban's 2nd fleet parked there which they hijacked." He added with a grumble.

"Heck." Subaru cursed.

"The damned coward…!"

"Yeah. Now that Tabuu's come out into the open, though, we hope that his presence will make them hesitant to attack us so boldly. I'm sure that even Kuroban wouldn't last long in a battle with Tabuu. But we can't be totally sure of that as of yet."

"Let's hope so!" Solo fumed.

"What about Misora – chan?"

"She woke up as well. She's in the same state as you guys. That asides… From now on… Subaru! You're to contact me every time a mail reaches you: that's an order!" Akatsuki got to the point.

"R-roger, sir!"

"… Guess I overdid it. My bad. I've been SO stressed all morning that I ended up discharging that anger into you guys. Anyway. You're going to act VERY carefully from now on. And, Solo… Do as you like."

"I don't care if you order me around. I got into this mess too." Solo shrugged.

"Alright. So for now… You need to properly rest. I'll switch on the TV to see if that can distract us a bit… Let's see…"

"… And thus begins the awaited _meijin_ battle!" The newscaster announced on-screen.

" _Shogi_? Why not… Let's see… "Meijin" is the 7th title… The other 6 were… What were there? Acid?"

"Sheesh. Shidou…" Acid sighed.

"What?"

"Nothing. Ahem, ahem. "Oui", "Kisei", "Ouza", "Oushou", "Kiou", "Ryuuou" and "Meijin"…" Acid listed.

"Aha. Why did you get annoyed?"

"The other day, 45 days ago to be exacts, you were presuming in front of Ryuusuke that you would become a Meijin of _shogi_ one day. You were jealous that he was a fan of the player that is aspiring to become this year's _meijin_." Acid explained.

"D-did I?" He gasped.

"I have it recorded."

"Oh man."

Subaru and Solo didn't comment but were obviously surprised that Akatsuki had said such a thing.

"Whatever."

"By the way… A mail from Dr. Yoiri… I have already checked it and I got confirmation from the Chief that she sent it…"

"What does she say this time around?"

"That you should hire a personal trainer."

"Not that again. I've got enough with the gym's standard equipment and I don't need any personal trainer! She must've read somewhere that it's fashionable or something like that." He sighed.

"Not my problem."

"I know! I'll complain later. I'm going to check on the rest: if you need something then call for the nurse. But don't move from the beds unless the nurses or the medics authorize you to do so."

"Roger, Akatsuki – san."

"Fine."

"Be careful, you 2." Acid added.

Akatsuki left the room too so Subaru and Solo focused on the match: each player carefully though of their next move before executing it.

"The aspirant is careful." Solo commented.

"Of course. He must be careful or else the champion will turn the thing around in one instant." Subaru replied.

"Hum. Hence why they call it a battle… You must bring out the whole of your knowledge and abilities to win…" Solo looked interested.

"And, above all… Have a LOT of patience."

"More irony? I don't care right now. I've acted like a neophyte, anyway."

 _Just you wait, Kuroban… I'll bring you down AGAIN! I promise you!_


	10. Chapter 10: Kidding

**Chapter 10: Kidding**

09:33 AM (Japan Time), Sunday January the 27th…

"… Hello."

"Ah. Guys. You came. Thanks."

"We visited Gonta – kun already."

"Hey, _iinchou_ … Say something, no?"

"I think she doesn't dare to."

"Guess that…"

Kizamaro, Luna, Tsukasa, Kiboyama and Jack came to visit Subaru: he was sitting on an armchair next to the bed and had an open novel on his lap: the guys were calm but Luna looked nervous and was glancing elsewhere: Solo wasn't in the room.

"Eh… Subaru – kun… Are you… alright?" Luna timidly asked.

"… Yeah. I'm better."

"Eh… You can do it!" She suddenly blurted.

"Excuse me?"

"W-well… You've got your limits, no…? Yesterday was a bad day, but… Next time you'll do better, no?" She timidly ventured.

"Of course. Please understand… I'm not invincible. I've got my limits, just as you said… I happened to reach them… But it'll surely won't happen again…"

"I knew it! That was just bad luck… And I'm sure the bad person used some trap or something like that! The Subaru – kun I know wouldn't be caught so easily! Right?" She got in a better mood.

"You're right. But they won't get away with it. I'll have them be judged and send them to the prison."

"Good!" Kizamaro smiled.

"As long as you don't bring up your newest "11th law of common sense", then…" Pedia ironically commented.

"11th?" Subaru rolled his eyes.

"Eh…" Kizamaro gulped.

"Why 11th?" Jack asked.

"Thought it sounded more realistic."

"It doesn't." Kiboyama muttered.

"At all." Tsukasa added.

"Ki-za-ma-ro~…! Who told you to open your mouth?" Luna scolded in a hush.

"I'm sorry, ma'am!" He whispered back.

"Fine. We'll settle this later. Anyway… Subaru – kun: I'm going to tell this to the other students. I don't want the bad people to get away with it: with striking our morale."

"I owe you one, _iinchou_."

"In exchange…"

"What?"

"Support me when the next _iinchou_ election, will you?"

"Of course. Piece of a cake."

"Good. Let's go visit Misora – chan next. By the way… You were sharing the room with someone else?"

"Solo. But he's gone to have a blood analysis."

"Ah. Then send him greetings from us. Let's go, you guys." Luna calmly ordered the group.

"Roger."

"Thanks for coming."

The group left and Subaru sighed: he resumed reading the novel and looked like he was getting in a better mood.

"I'm back." Solo walked back in.

"How did it go like?"

"There was no abnormality and the levels were all green. We can leave this afternoon after a final check."

"Good. The class dropped by to greet and are going to try to explain to everyone that even I have my limits. That should help counter the depression they have."

"Fine. If that will disrupt Kuroban's plans, then…"

"We benefit."

"Beware! Ms. Lil Trap teams with Ms. Big Trap! The result? Koumei's Trap! The most infamous trap of all history!" A familiar voice rang out close by in a whisper but loud enough to be heard.

"Huh? Omega – san!" Subaru gasped.

Omega became visible but today his eyes displayed amusement and like he was up to some prank along with a broad grin.

"Yessir. Uncle Mars Warrior, on the scene…! _Shachou_ told me you were a bit down so he told me to provide some humor… And since he directed a thousand Death Glares to me then I'll have to keep it small… By the way, B-B-B-B-Bertie~… Did ya know?"

"Know… What?"

"People say that "B-B-B-B-Bertie~" gotta be a distant familiar of yours: they've started to realize you and the fella look alike!"

"No wonder." He wasn't too surprised.

"And so… I bring forth… A cookie!"

He suddenly drew a cookie and tossed it towards Subaru who calmly caught it with his left hand: he frowned.

"It's a plastic imitation!" He complained in a hush.

"Yessir. Dragon gave me a hand!"

"Dragon – san… He must've felt "inspired by Master Confucius" again, I guess…" He rolled his eyes.

"Ah! Solo. My bad. Didn't see ya. I know a way to turn Kuroban ugly and repulsive!"

"Oh yeah?" Solo looked slightly interested.

"Turn the guy into Pinkban."

"Pinkban? Heh. Why not…" He looked amused.

"Oh please." Subaru found it silly.

"Omega… Don't go over the board. I'm listening!" Vadous hushed over his radio.

"Don't worry, Vadous. I needed something to boost up my mood." Solo shrugged.

"If you say so…"

"Well. Here's a joke. "Here are the plane tickets."… "Plane! What luxury!"… "I knew it! That it couldn't be a plane!"… "Bus: "The Plane"."… Get it?"

"So instead of a real plane it was a bus named "plane"? What a way to trick someone." Subaru sighed.

"Heh, heh, heh!"

"So… Anything new?" Solo asked.

"Nothing yet. We've combed the Moon's surface just in case but found nothing. We've sent Viruses to explore the insides but that will take some time… It can be a dead end but you never know." Vadous replied.

"Well. Exhaust all possibilities." Solo shrugged.

"That's what I'm doing."

"So! Bertie!"

"Subaru, sir. My name is Subaru. And you know that."

"Bertie is cuter!"

"I don't think so, sir."

"Here comes Dry Guy!"

"Omega…!" Vadous hissed.

"Oops. Time to switch topics. Ahem, ahem! If Ishikawa won't go to the mountain the mountain shall go Ishikawa."

"I'd heard that before." Subaru shrugged.

"Did ya know? Utagai has been ascended to Duke of Disbelief!"

"HUH? Oh come on. Omega – san. It's stupid, sir. And don't bully poor Utagai – san if you may, sir."

"I'm not bullying: just ascending the guy!"

"Loopholes, sir."

"Indeed! Stop saying bad things about others, Omega." Vadous fumed.

"Oops. Looks like _shachou_ is short in patience today. Oh well. I'll be going back and tell Dragon about Crimson Dragon. He'll add it to his picture book of "Mythical Dragons inspired by Master Confucius' Teachings"… And if you don't believe ask him to show it to you guys." He blinked Subaru the right eye.

"Dragon – san…! He takes his own named too literally… Why did he name himself "Dragon Hell" to begin with? Did he love dragons when he was younger?" Subaru wondered.

"I dunno myself too." Vadous admitted.

"Talk about an odd guy." Solo was surprised as well.

"OK, then… I'll be going back to the HQ. See ya around and beware of flying and zapping sea-gulls! Heh, heh, heh!"

12:22 PM (Taiwan Time)…

"… Shinobi! Inform me: what's the status of things?"

"Yes, Hyde – sama! The Satella Police is searching every nook and cranny for Kuroban. No wonder. After what he pulled yesterday."

"What?"

"I told you, Hyde – sama, yesterday afternoon."

"Did you?"

"Yeah. I've got it recorded, Hyde."

"Ah! Now I remember. That spatial fleet. Huh! I wish one too! Then I could restore Vienna's pride and honor!"

"I'm SO skeptical."

"Uh-oh…"

Hyde called for Shinobi to come to report to him and he announced he'd done so already: Phantom confirmed it and Hyde then remembered what it was: he suddenly made a grimace and closed both fists: Phantom sounded skeptical and defeatist while Shinobi foresaw trouble.

"By the way, Hyde – sama… Speaking of Vienna… I intercepted a mail written by Akatsuki that said that Kuroban had announced that he was gonna show up in the Opera House…"

"WHAT! Intending to dirty the prideful and gorgeous Opera House? I won't let them, by my might! I swear!"

"What do we do?"

"Head over there! NOW!"

"A-alright."

"Hyde~… How can you be sure it's not misinformation that that Kuroban guy spread to lure the Satella Police away from Japan?"

"I don't care!"

"You should. Maybe the guy's aiming to take us all out by collapsing the building as soon as we come in?"

"Then that's another reason to rush there! I'll find the bombs, toss them outside, and become a National Historical Patriotic Glorious Grand Mighty Magnificent Splendid Admired Nobleman Hero!" He began to list a long string of adjectives.

"You're getting cocky. Cool your head, man."

"SAYS THE TABLOID HYBRID!"

"I DUNNO WHY YOU'RE SO OBSESSED WITH TABLOIDS: THERE WEREN'T IN MU TO BEGIN WITH!"

"THERE WERE 'CAUSE I SAY SO!"

"REALITY DISTORTION FIELDS GO HOME!"

"Oops." Shinobi muttered.

Hyde began to yell at Phantom and he lost patience so he began to yell back: Assassin suddenly showed up and began to flip in the air while making a hollow chuckle: it was obvious it was laughing at how Phantom finally lost all patience.

"You shut up." Shinobi grumbled.

"REALITY CONTROLLING FIELDS ARE MY SECRET WEAPON!"

"YOU MORON! IT'S A TRAP: EVEN A KID WOULD REALIZE IT!"

"TRAPS AND WHATEVER! I'LL BE VICTORIOUS!"

"YOU SAID THE SAME THING WHEN WIZARD CITY AND YOU KNOW WHAT HAPPENED!"

"HAH! BUT I HAVE CRIMSON AND I CAN SELL IT!"

"SO WHAT!"

"WHAT!"

"THAT DOESN'T CHANGE YOU'RE BEING CHASED!"

"HAH! LET THEM CHASE ME: I CAN'T BE CAUGHT!"

"SAYS THE MAN! THEY CLOSED YOU IN JAIL BACK IN DECEMBER! SHINOBI HAD TO COME RESCUE YOU!"

"THAT NEVER HAPPENED!"

"DENYING REALITY WON'T MAKE YOUR STRONGER!"

" _Kuu, kuu, kuu!_ " Assassin kept on chuckling.

"You shut up already, you idiot." Shinobi was getting annoyed as well.

"How pathetic." Kuroban's voice echoed all across the space.

"You're Kuroban!" Hyde, Phantom and Shinobi gasped.

"Indeed. This originally belonged to me. I left some hidden programs there and there and one of them tells me the current location. But don't try to find me. I'm remotely accessing the speakers."

"Damn it all!" Hyde cursed.

"See?" Phantom grumbled.

"Hmpf. And you call yourself smart. How pathetic. Truly. I don't know why you got Orihime's eye but you must've pretended to be more competent than you actually are. Whatever. Not like it matters by now. What matters is that… You're weak. That's all."

"Says the man! You're always hiding!"

"Hmpf. I'm cautious! The type that would take a stone bridge apart just to make sure it's solid." Kuroban fumed.

"HUH? Are there types like those?" Hyde gasped.

"There are." Phantom grumbled.

"Whatever. I don't need this thing… for now, that is."

"You bastard… Threatening me!"

"Threat or warning… Pick whichever you want."

"Nya~rgh!"

"You want to fight me so badly… Come at Vienna. I'll be waiting to show you how weak you really are. I can predict you won't even last 10 seconds in front of my power. The power of the On'Setsu Kingdom."

"No wonder. It's said that you almost defeated Rock Man through a hidden ability." Phantom muttered.

"Indeed, servant of my enemy!"

"I won't deny that. But I wasn't around when the invasion. I was created later on." Phantom shrugged.

"Fine. But nevertheless, Mu is my enemy."

"Of course! I wasn't trying to run away from the fact."

"You're intelligent. So why do you stick around to this fool?"

"I'd loved to quit but… Got a debt, ya see. This guy freed me from a Mu ruin and I owe 'im that much." Phantom admitted.

"That's the only reason you follow me?" Hyde grumbled.

"Of course. Were it not for that reason I'd gone somewhere else already because one day I'm gonna turn crazy."

"Hum. A debt is a debt indeed… Fine."

"I wasn't asking for your sympathy, either. We're enemies, no?"

"I wanted to measure your intelligence. That's all."

"Ah. If it's just that." He shrugged.

"As for that other Denpa Body…"

" _Oreesamaa?_ " Assassin asked.

"… "The great I?"… Yeah, the guy means you. And don't boast."

"Hum. Too simplistic in mind. That "Assassin Clan" only wanted a tool to make their assassins stronger and that's all. I'm amused at something."

"What?" Shinobi asked.

"You killed 26 men and nevertheless you can act rationally and all. So that means you forget the faces and names of those you kill?"

"Yeah. I trained myself to. They're uninteresting. Got better things to focus upon, anyway. And don't try to convince me, because it was Hyde – sama that granted me the strength to become who I am." Shinobi calmly replied.

"Fine… So we've got 2 clever subjects and 2 stupid subjects." Kuroban concluded with a snicker.

"STUPID?" Hyde grumbled.

" _Onoree!"_ Assassin growled next.

"See?" Phantom sighed.

"Yeah, you are." Shinobi replied to Assassin.

"FINE! So I only need to come to Vienna to fight you! Get ready: I'll crush each and every one of your damned BONES!"

"You will try." Kuroban dully replied as if to further taunt him.

"Shinobi, man. Follow us as a backup. Ya never know."

"Alright. It's better this way, anyway. But I think we shouldn't leave this thing empty to begin with."

"Hmmm… True… Oh well. Stay here and monitor us through an eyeball. If things turn awry turn the portal on and rescue us."

"That sounds more careful."

"Stop chatting like damned parrots of southern jungles!"

"You're the parrot." Phantom replied.

"FINE! We'll settle that LATER! TO VIENNA WE GO BY MY ROYAL BLOOD AND MY MIGHT!"

"You've got none of those to begin with, man. Sheesh."

07:47 AM (Vienna Time)…

"… Here we are! The Opera House!"

"Hum. I can't feel anything in a 20 meter radius."

"Show up, Kuroban!"

"I'll show you my pawn."

"What!"

"Go, Club Strong!"

"Mugro~h…! CRUSH! DESTROY! DELETE~!"

"Damn it all!"

"Saw it coming."

Phantom Black appeared in the stage of the Vienna Opera House and called out for Kuroban but Club Strong materialized there inside: he brought down his club and Phantom Black dodged at the last second while the floor broke due to the blow.

"The historical Vienna Opera House~! Kuroban! You savage!"

"Hmpf." Kuroban was unimpressed.

"Hruoh!"

Club Strong swung the club and formed three tornadoes which Phantom Black dodged by quickly warping from one spot to another: he snickered and suddenly warped outside of the stage so Club Strong followed him into a square in the Wave Roads above a nearby plaza: Phantom Black shot a Machine Flame Battle Card at Club Strong and inflicted damage: Club Strong roared and attacked again by randomly hitting the floor with the club while forming Wood Towers: Phantom Black snickered and dodged the attacks while shooting Machine Flame at Club Strong again and again until he roared and was deleted: he quickly turned around and found Spade Magnets rushing towards him.

"Hah! I had the hunch! Come, rubbish!"

"They seem to have been rebuilt in a rush… Or maybe it's supposed to give you the impression you're very strong but then plans on sending the real deal…" Phantom muttered.

"Whatever!"

"Hmpf. Then… Huh? Someone's approaching…? Damn! Tactical withdrawal! I'll crush some other day! Farewell!"

"What! The rascal run away!"

"Found you! Hyde!"

"Akatsuki!"

"Same one!"

Acid Ace rushed in and the Spade Magnets had warped away before it'd reached Phantom Black.

"So you're the cause of my humiliation!"

"Huh? What are you talking about?"

"Kuroban was here! Close by! But you came! And the guy fled!"

"Oh yeah? I just got a report that you'd been sighted here and you were fighting someone."

"Don't play dumb! You're the one who sent the mail saying Kuroban would show up here!"

"I never sent such a mail. Kuroban must've sent it. Like yesterday: the guy loves to fake emails using my name." Acid Ace grumbled.

"Damn it all! So I got fooled by that bastard! I'm sure he wasn't intending to fight me directly! Wanted to lure me out of the base! Hah! But I left Shinobi as backup there! I'm a GENIUS!"

"That was MY idea." Phantom sighed.

"No wonder." Acid Ace muttered.

"Indeed." Acid dully added.

"NYA~H! THEY ALL MAKE A FOOL OUT OF ME~!"

"Heh. You brought this into yourself."

"Damn them all! Shinobi! Is everything nominal over there?"

"Yeah, Hyde – sama! I shut off the central computer and turned off the backup energy sources for it just in case. Placed some sensors in the control bridge too." Shinobi reported.

"Don't lower the guard! Kuroban could be about to intrude there and try to steal it in front of my noses!"

"R-roger!"

"Alright. I'll take the chance to…!"

"Damn it! The rubbish is back!"

"What! That cheap copy! I'll beat it and…!"

"Hah! Fool!"

"Shit."

Acid Ace had been about to battle Phantom Black but he gasped and signaled behind Acid Ace so he whipped around but Phantom Black snickered and formed a "portal" to sink inside and it closed: Acid Ace grumbled under his breath.

"Lovely."

"We fell for such an obvious trick… Shame on me." Acid sighed.

"Now's not the time to worry about this."

"I know, Shidou."

"Hmpf. So you're a fake prophet as well, like I thought!" Kuroban's voice rang out from close by.

"So you've come back, huh? You think you're a fox?" Acid Ace taunted.

"Who knows, you damned fake prophet?"

"Hmpf." Acid Ace wasn't impressed.

"Soon… Once "Wiita" is completed… I'll bring it out… And no barrier shall be able to stop me!"

"Wait and see."

"Hmpf. Stubborn barbarians."

"You're one to talk. Wrecking an Opera House."

"Hmpf. These fools needed a lesson: they've always thought they were so mighty and all but were mere fools."

"I wonder about that."

"What?"

"You didn't leave a strong impression in History."

"Hmpf. Those damned Mu overshadowed us… But we've got pieces of technology that have survived the passage of time… Hidden across the world and waiting for their awakening… When they do… The world will be ours!

"Guess that."

"Hmpf. Fake prophets will never understand the sacrifices we've done to protect our glorious and bright On'Setsu Kingdom!"

"Shoo, shoo. You're not scary."

"Not even that damned Lucifer impersonator will be able to halt me: now that I have earned "that power"!"

"Soul power?" Acid Ace taunted.

"HMPF!"

"So you're like Burai, huh? You hate bonds."

"They're fake prophets too! What "bond power"? Rubbish!"

"Maybe so maybe no."

"Whatever. I've got better things to take care of than having to stick around with a fake prophet that makes my blood boil. Soon enough I shall have buried you all! Farewell!"

"It'd seem he's fled." Acid reported.

"You couldn't figure out the location?"

"No. It'd seem there were several Viruses acting as speakers set there and there in a 1 km radius."

"Hum. So the guy was never physically here. And wanted to try to crush Hyde but I happened to come."

"So it'd seem."

"Fine. Let's go back and report."

"Shidou… In the meanwhile… A mail from Omega has come. I've checked the origin and Vadous' server acknowledges that such a mail has been dispatched so it's real."

"What does it say?"

"Well… Oh no."

"Don't tell me that…" He seemed to predict what it was.

"Yes… "Moon Ace and Acid Disaster"… Not again."

"Yeah… The guy… He'll never tire of that stupid and childish joke. He needs to be upgraded too. Oh well. Better that than the other Omega lashing out at everyone and everything and being unable to think in a rational manner. By the way: make sure to continue the watch over that Suzuka girl. Kanaya might target her and use her as bait to lure Hibiki into her ugly clutches." He turned serious after complaining.

"Understood. It's already being done but I'll tell them to exercise further caution and to raise the guard."

"OK, then… Back home… This is far from over…"

 _The tension is too high… Let's hope no – one ends up dead! Damn it!_


	11. Chapter 11: Flowers

**Chapter 11: Flowers**

12:45 PM (Japan Time), Wednesday January the 30th…

"… Huff!"

"No luck, Ka?"

"Of course not, Ku! Else I wouldn't come back empty-handed! Would I?"

"My bad. I didn't want to annoy you."

"Whatever. Both kitties are at the same place but it's riddled with sensors that send a warning signal if any attempt to disable them is performed so it's pointless to try to use an EMP."

"Blood and Sigma are guarding the school the whole time. They scan all possible frequencies. I can't get closer than 25 meters."

"Sheesh."

"And to top it off, the other day we were about to decode one of Hyde's eyeballs but it lacked a crucial piece."

"Yeah, I know!"

Kanaya returned into the Dealer Orbital Base while sighing in defeat and Kurayami began to talk with her.

"Whatever! I'll use another method!"

"What method?"

"I'll intimidate them!"

"How?"

"Columbine flowers!"

"HUH? Flowers?" Kurayami gasped.

"Yeah! Flower language!"

"Ah… Yeah. There was that, yeah. And what do Columbine flowers mean in flower language, anyway?"

"Heh! "Certain victory"!"

"Hey! Sounds amusing."

"Yeah… That should make them shudder! They'll try to pretend it was nothing but I've got another plan to intimidate them… I'll send them some "special" packages… Tee, heh, heh!"

"I get the idea. Maybe I'll do the same for my preys."

"Yeah… It'll be fun."

"It's a waste of time, fellas!" Hikaru's voice rang out.

"Futaba Hikaru!"

"No~! Eisei Aaron!" He complained.

"Hah! Force me to say it! Dark Satoshi!"

"HUH?"

"Too bad ya won't get the point of my joke." Kurayami snickered.

"Hah! Whatever. Like I care, outdated punk wannabe."

"Talk about yourself and your greasy hair: worse than Snape's!"

"Snape? Who's that?"

"Your worst nightmare: the Hogwarts Potions Teacher!"

"Potions? Who'd want to rely on those? Sounds like some fantasy tale rip-off to begin with." Hikaru grumbled.

"You're one to talk, Black!"

"I'm no longer "Gemini Spark Black" either! I'm… Gray Thunderbolt – sama~! Have that for a change~!"

"Beware! You're going to be eaten up by Kuroban's "High One"!"

"Like it can! It's just a fictional God! Like all Gods! And besides: _aibou_ 's holograms are just that, holograms! They can't harm me! So your threat doesn't mean anything, Kumi!"

"Not that nickname again! I HATE IT!"

"Hah! _Laugh and grow fat_!" He taunted in English.

"Wha~t?"

"Catch me if ya can!"

"Hold it right there, Ku! I've been scanning the surroundings but found nothing apart from some speakers set there and there. The guy isn't close to the place to begin with. And as soon as you try to get out I'm sure the speakers will self-delete." Kanaya warned Kurayami.

"If you're SO strong then why don't you come PROVE it?"

"Would love to but _aibou_ won't let me. And if I don't obey then I can't do DH. If I can't do DH then I can't do anything. Can't be helped: I owe him a lot!" Hikaru grumbled.

"Hah! And there you were saying we were powerless."

"I'm not powerless! One day I'll prove it! My word!"

"Shoo, shoo. You'll prove that you need to visit a cursed ranch in the Wild West!" Kanaya taunted.

"Wha~t? T-this GAL!"

"Hmpf! Men."

"Hmpf! Women. Boring! I prefer dealing with guys! They're easier to tame, even!" Hikaru fumed.

"Then don't get in MY way. My prey are women, you know. It doesn't involve you." Kanaya countered.

"No, I didn't intend to! I only wanted to compete with Kumi over there to see who manages to catch Hoshikawa first!"

"A showdown? Fine! I accept it! I'll show it to you! That I'm faster!"

"Faster? Heh! You're as fast as a turtle!"

"You're the damned turtle, Futaba!"

"EISEI!"

"Futaba!"

"EISEI!"

"Futaba!"

"NYAGRASHAMAGRA~H!" He howled something long and undecipherable which seemed to be an accumulation of bad mood and exasperation.

"Hah! Eat that one for a change! Super Masochist!"

"It's true that I was a sex slave for a year and a half in Choina but that's unrelated! I've now become a Super Sadist! And ya were that gal's fuck pal, weren't ya!"

"So what? I've also become a Super Sadist and unlike you I already managed to get my hands on Hoshikawa and his pals once! Including your crybaby "Main Personality – sama~"!"

"I never called Tsukasa like that to begin that! And as far as I care we're now mere look-alikes! That's all!"

"Hmpf! Then go broom the yard."

"BROOM? ME? I'm no grunt! I'm not a "Bias"!"

"A "Bias"? And what would that be?"

"The foot soldiers of the "Growth"!"

"I dunno where you get those fancy names from but what matters is that it's just you and Kuroban! You lapdog."

"LAPDOG? ME? HOW DARE YOU!"

"We dare!"

"Hah! Talk about yourselves! Defunct clan lapdogs!"

"We serve no – one!" Kurayami growled.

"We only work for ourselves!" Kanaya added.

"Hmpf! Struggle while you can!"

"You're one to TALK!"

"Sheesh! This is my climax!"

"Oh yeah? It's your anti-climax instead!"

"By the beard of the devil!"

"And the beard of your face!"

"I'm not 16 yet! Don't treat me like I was some pops!"

"Lupin the 3rd?"

"Who the hell is that?"

"Ask your intelligence. If you've got any left, that is."

"Wha~t? Damn it all: I'll make you regret that yet! But I'm busy so I'll leave it at here for today! But this isn't over yet! It's far from! You'll soon taste further despair!"

"Busybody."

"Sheesh! Farewell!"

"The speakers are gone." Kanaya detected.

"Hmpf. Whatever. We'll soon see who's the fastest. And I'm sure you're going to fail in a miserable manner as well." Kurayami shrugged.

"Let's ready the "special packages" and startle them."

"Yeah… Let's make them shudder in fear!"

"And maybe they'll give up struggle to "protect" their "friends"." Kanaya giggled.

"That'd be sweet."

"Truly sweet. _Sweet honey trap_!"

"We could patent that." Kurayami chuckled.

13:35 PM (Japan Time)…

"… What? A package addressed to Hibiki has shown up in the yard? Is that true, Ryuusuke?"

"Yeah. I sent a bomb disposal squad to check it out just in case it has a bomb: I suspect Kanaya sends it."

"What did it have inside?"

"At a first glance it looked like a pot of columbine flowers."

"Hum. There might be some poison or drug mixed in, even."

"Well then, I'll ask the forensic team to check it out later."

"Sure."

Akatsuki was talking with Ryuusuke on the hall of the WAXA Japan Branch building: Acid was hovering close by and Queen Tia was standing next to Akatsuki while being silent.

"Do those flowers ring a bell?" Akatsuki asked her.

"I'm not that fond of flowers."

"My, my. Shidou – chan. What's the matter?"

"Kanaya sent columbine flowers but we dunno why."

"My, my. I know why. Flower language, my dear!"

"Ah. Yeah… There was such a thing…"

"They stand for "certain victory"…"

"I see. So she's taunting us to make us think she's found a way to achieve her goal but in truth she's unable to."

"Sounds like it. Women like those hardly ever give up." Queen Tia dully muttered.

"So it would seem." Acid dully added.

"I knew that, Mr. Lawyer."

"Not again." He groaned.

"Good news." Tabuu suddenly showed up there.

"At last! What did you figure out?"

"K & K's location: the Dealer Orbital Base!"

"I see! So dropping the escape pod in Kiso Valley was a ruse to make us think they'd gone to a nearby town."

"However… They're on the edge and nervous. They could see us coming: so we better wait for a chance."

"Good."

"It'd seem Hikaru taunted them through some remotely controlled speakers set close to the base."

"I see. So that's how the guy manages to make it sound like he's close by when he actually isn't there." Akatsuki rubbed his chin.

"They were talking about sending some "packages" which seem to be something else than the flowers."

"Hum. No surprise."

"I guess we should we get news about those."

"Good. For now we can monitor those 2. What about Hyde?"

"I think I'm close to finding the guy, too. I'll go back to searching for the behemoth."

"Alright. Good luck."

"Thanks. We'll all need it."

Tabuu warped away while a giggle rang out: Akatsuki sighed and rolled his eyes while Queen Tia frowned.

"The Queen and the Ace: on the deck!"

"What deck?" Queen Tia wondered.

"Dunno."

"Mr. Speaker of Political Intentions strikes back!"

"Oh come on."

"The party-pooper is back! It's… No – one at all!"

"Omega! I know it's ya. Show up!"

Omega suddenly landed there from the ceiling and Akatsuki grumbled while Queen Tia was surprised.

"Heh, heh! I heard the news! Kumi and Kaya are hanging 'round the Skylab wannabe!"

"Skylab?" Akatsuki frowned.

"I'm a retro _connoisseur_!" He grinned.

"So what."

"Heh! I'm a cool fella!"

"I'm SO impressed."

"I can tell you something impressive!"

"What?"

"I'm as fast as light!"

"That's overused." Akatsuki sighed.

"By the way, Queen – sama~! Did ya know our fella loves to devour "Sweet Candy" like no – one else?" He grinned.

"I knew. So?" Queen Tia sighed.

"So he's gonna switch to "Bitter Chocolate"! Dr. Yoiri says so!"

"It was "Bittersweet Chocolate". And it was a commercial failure 18 years ago to begin with." Acid corrected.

"Oh yeah? My, my. Interesting! Bittersweet Brad Shad!"

"HUH? That's - STUPID!"

"Nope! That's - BRILLIANT!"

"My, my. It's Omega – chan."

"Yo~! Hakase~! Did ya know? Akatsuki is going to jump the jumping jumper of jumpers!" Omega laughed.

"My, my. I see."

"Don't believe the guy's trolling, hakase~!" Akatsuki grumbled.

"How about you do something USEFUL?"

"I did try to look into the base Kuban had been at but found nothing that wasn't DUST. Calling on Dust Man! To cleanse it up!"

"Yeah, yeah. Sure, sure."

"And Mop Woman!"

"HMPF!" Queen Tia got annoyed.

"Oops. Hit a taboo. Tab – chan's to blame, I guess."

"Oh come on. Quit it with that silly pun."

"Did you know Mr. Rabbit's about to date Ms. Rabbit?"

"So what? Does it have any RELEVANCE?"

"Mr. Floating Speaker has something to add?"

"I am not a speaker!" Acid fumed.

"OMEGA! What happened to your promise? HUH?" Vadous grumbled over the radio.

"Ah! Good news indeed! I found something along the way!"

"What?" Vadous skeptically asked.

"A file written by "Luxaar" in which it says "better crush the Earthlings while they're still machine puppets!"… It was on that base!"

"Machine puppets? I dunno what the hell it means. It must be something taken off somewhere to begin with. A dead end Kuroban left behind to puzzle us." Vadous fumed.

"I see! Bravo, Mr. Holmes!"

"I'm not Holmes! Stop acting like an idiot: search elsewhere! Find some lead or some hint! Anything!"

"OK! I'll steal the guy's helmet and be right back! _Ciao, caro mio! E la comedia e finita_!"

Omega rushed out while howling like a wolf: one Commando gasped as he found a note on his hands which wasn't there before.

"Huh? "Uncle MW X B-B-B-B-Bertie~!"… What the heck?" He wondered while frowning.

"It's a prank. Forget it, man."

"Huff. Man."

"By the way, Shidou – chan. Did you bring "it"?" Dr. Yoiri suddenly pulled him a bit away and asked in a whisper.

"Huh? Bring what?"

"Don't be so dense, Shidou – chan. Congratulations."

"On what?"

"My, my! Children nowadays…"

"Hakase. If you mean a proposal… You yourself aren't married." Acid dully reminded her.

"Oh my! What a pity. So that means it's not the time yet, Acid – chan?"

"It isn't. And save me the nicknames if you may. Hakase."

"My, my. These children…"

"Please go back to the Main Computer room if you may! Sheesh. I hope we can catch those 2 soon enough! Get ready! K & K!"

15:55 PM (Japan Time)…

"… Eh… Misora?"

"What's up, Suzuka?"

"I found these packages addressed to you and I in the storage room and it says "open where others can't see"…"

"Hmpf! Kanaya."

"That sadist?"

"The same one! I'm sure it's some kind of threat to try to pressure us or impress us."

"What do we do?"

"Leave it up to me. I'm going to dispose of this and show that damned gal we're not impressed by her vain threats!"

"A-alright. Here they are."

"Good."

Suzuka had come to meet Misora in her room and she looked up from what seemed to be a series of documents concerning the filming of one of the drama series episodes: she got annoyed when Suzuka showed her two cardboard boxes which she carried under her right arm: they were sealed with cello-tape.

"By the way… Look: there's a photo of…"

"…columbine flowers. "Certain victory"… What a smug gal! Using flower language to taunt us…!"

"So… it'd seem."

"Oh come on. Suzuka. I'm not angry at you. It's just that that gal's antiques are starting to get the best of my patience. You resume doing what you were doing and I'm going to dispose of this in a breeze."

"Alright, thank you. But be careful nevertheless."

"I know. Later."

Misora came out into the yard while carrying both boxes and turned on her Hunter – VG which displayed a radar: there was nothing unusual on a 1 km radius so she inputted another command.

"Akatsuki – san?"

"Hey. Hibiki. Did that gal drop something there?" Akatsuki came on screen and wasn't too surprised.

"Yes. Could you come dispose of it?"

"Alright. I'll ask a favor out of Vadous. Be right there."

"OK."

She finished the call and fumed: a giggle rang out and Kanaya suddenly showed up to her right but Misora directed a dull and uninterested glare at her.

"It's a hologram." She announced.

"I knew that. But it works, no?"

"If it's to display your amateur make-up then it does work."

"AMATERU MAKE-UP? KI~H! T-THIS GAL!"

"Charmed." She dully replied.

The "portal" opened and Acid Ace rushed out: he aimed his gun at Kanaya but then held it up when he realized it was a hologram: he ignored her and inspected the boxes.

"Huff." He fumed.

"I fail to see why you exasperate. It's not a bomb." Acid dully commented.

"Complicated human stuff!"

"So it would seem."

"Hah! Computer – chan can't understand the grace and beauty of it!"

"And what if?" He shot back.

"Wha~t? Ki~h! You damned interlopers!"

"Charmed." Acid Ace dully shot back.

"This involves WOMEN! You MEN! Stay OUTTA THIS!"

"Can't. Rape is rape." Acid Ace icily hissed.

"Hmpf! Men are MEN!"

"So what. Yelling will make you invincible, perhaps?"

"You shut up!"

"Why don't you go mop the hotel staircases for a change?" Misora taunted Kanaya.

"MOP? ME? YOU DARE TO DEGRADE ME?"

"I dare. Wannabe."

"I'm about to EXPLODE!"

"So what. Like that'll help you escape eventual capture. You'll make a mistake sooner or later. You'll get confident."

"Hey! Last time Hyde tricked us and abandoned us in that prison place with no escape routes!"

"And the time before that Tabuu's power brought you down."

"That was a damned CHEAT! We were SO CLOSE!"

"Maybe you were too lazy back when Wizard City?"

"Back then I thought it would be funnier to tame those 2! It's after that Sofia gal started chasing ya that I realized it would be fun to tame ya as well! HMPF!" She fumed.

"So you're no different from her. You're a copy of her, maybe?" Misora kept on taunting.

"WHAT? ME? A COPY OF THAT SMUG BITCH? NO!"

"Ah. So it'd seem."

"GHAKGNDKSGHTKH!" She growled something undecipherable.

"Mu idiom, I take it."

"By all the…!"

"Sent the packages to the Dream Island junkyard to be incinerated and disposed of."

"Whatever! They came out cheap! I can always steal those again and again! The columbine flowers bless me!"

"They bless your reality distortion field."

"DON'T PUT ME ON THE SAME BOAT AS HYDE~!"

"Then I'll put you on the same category."

"Pororon. Speakers set in a 15 meters radius." Harp materialized and reported to Acid Ace.

"So she's copying Kuroban's setup. Can't even be original."

"I HEARD THAT! AT LEAST I'M SHOWING UP MYSELF UNLIKE THOSE DAMNED COWARDS! MEN! AND THEN THEY SAY THEY'RE COURAGEOUS: THEY'RE A BUNCH OF COWARDS! THEY START WARS JUST TO FULFILL THEIR PETTY GREED!" Kanaya yelled.

"That's a fact but I hardly see what it has to do with anything."

"HMPF! LAUGH AND GROW FAT, HIBIKI!"

"FAT! ME! YOU GROW FAT! MAGAZINE MODEL WANNABE!"

"ME! I'LL MAKE YA REGRET THAT YET!"

"Pororon. Projector located 2.25 meters NNE and a height of 1.71 meters…" Harp reported.

Acid Ace rushed there with the Wing Blade and found the projector (a sphere about the size of a tennis ball) there so he picked it and quickly closed it inside of a hermetical case.

"Got it. I'm going to analyze it."

"Sheesh! I'm off!"

"Porororon. Speakers self-deleted."

"I'm going back to the HQ. Blood will come inspect the area just in case there's something left. Don't lower the guard and make sure that your friend doesn't either." Acid Ace told her.

"Roger that."

Acid Ace returned and Misora sighed: she heard a gasp and spotted Suzuka who'd seemingly been looking on.

"How couldn't you feel the fear?" She asked.

"After all my "adventures"? You don't know the gal enough. She tries to appeal as scary but as you can see she can't make a bold move. She knows she'll eventually go down."

"And what was in the package?"

"Well…"

Misora walked up to her and whispered something on her right ear: Suzuka turned pallid while Misora was calm.

"Suzuka. It's psychological warfare. You mustn't let them get through your defenses: then it's all over. You lose. And they win."

"I see… But, Misora… I'm just a normal girl… I don't have as much experience as you so… All of this… Makes me feel so terrified…"

"I'll protect you, Suzuka. You can count on me. I might've lowered the guard the other day but… I'll do my best to avoid a repeat of that."

"Alright… Sorry, Misora… I believe in you… That you'll defeat them…"

"I fought them once and managed to hold on pretty well. I'd say this time around I'll do it better, too."

 _Kanaya… This is between you and me… I won't rest until I stop you!_


	12. Chapter 12: Acolyte

**Chapter 12: Acolyte**

08:04 AM (Japan Time), Friday February the 2nd…

"… Hmmm… Insofar… There doesn't seem to be a trace of them here: I thought they might've tried to rebuild these facilities but it doesn't seem to be the case…"

"Or so ya think!"

"Hmmm? Aha-hah. So you FINALLY dare to show up. Futaba."

"EISEI AARON! GRAY THUNDERBOLT!"

"Like I care. Can your attacks actually harm me?"

"They will! 'Cause I'm STRONGER! I don't depend on crybaby Tsukasa to DH anymore! HAH!"

"Hmpf. Fine. Bring out your best shot, then."

"You're asking for it!"

Tabuu had been exploring a round valley which had a large heap of metallic remains of something plus a collapsed structure: he'd been muttering to himself when Gray Thunderbolt showed up.

Gray Thunderbolt was a gray-colored Gemini Spark and having the golden armor on both arms.

Apart from that, he wasn't that much different from the normal Gemini Spark.

"Gray Thunder!"

He clasped both hands and built up electricity on his arms which travelled until his palms where it formed an spheroid: he then shot a powerful beam at Tabuu but it bounced off the armor without leaving the slightest scratch there: all color left Gray Thunderbolt's face.

"No way…! That was my strongest attack! But there isn't even a scratch!"

"Bad choice."

"Of what!"

"Of opponent."

"What!" He gasped.

" _Aibou_ built this armor to help me focus my powers…"

"E~H!"

"And it's very, very hard to destroy. It can survive a lot of spatial phenomena and even re-entry into an atmosphere… Even Earth's atmosphere… It's got almost not weakness too…"

"NO WAY!"

"Way. Only one man has been able to overcome it and that was Rock Man and it took him the Laplace Blade coated with Mu Metal. And knowing where the weaknesses where at, too. Which I don't plan on telling you because I'm not stupid." Tabuu dully lectured.

"I finally convince _aibou_ to let me come out on the flesh and I find this: what a panorama! Fine! I'll go beat Omega then! And _aibou_ will commend me at last! Got no use for these ruins: and this planet isn't our base to begin with! Hah! Have at ya!"

Gray Thunderbolt ran off while Tabuu shrugged and continued examining the wreckage: he found nothing so he sighed.

"Seems like the guy is right… I don't find anything here… And I've searched all locations too… Guess I'll go back to _aibou_ 's place… I'm sure that that guy can't be THAT troublesome. They'll find a way to exploit a weakness: he seems to be the arrogant type to begin with."

He formed a "portal" and flew inside to end up inside of a metallic room somewhere that had a device inside: the device consisted on a pyramidal base plus a tall ring built atop it and with some monitors and machines attached to the sides of the ring.

"Phew."

He headed for the door and it automatically opened so he came out.

"You're back?" Vadous was standing in the corridor.

"Yeah. Found our elusive acolyte."

"Hikaru?"

"Yeah. Now uses a variant of the Gemini Spark form which he names, as you know, "Gray Thunderbolt". He showed up when I was about to finish searching planet Zenay III. He tried his best shot but, as you can imagine, did nothing."

"I see."

"He'll surely show up to challenge someone but I guess Omega is first on his challenge list."

"Fine. I still have the guy in joker mode because there are some aspects of the other personality that I want to further polish before booting it up again…"

"Yeah. You better do that. Did you manage to get rid of that useless pride?" Tabuu asked.

"That I did but I want to establish some fail-safes in the though circuits to make sure he doesn't start building it up again."

"Of course. We don't need that."

"Excuse me, Boss… Where's my assignment today?" Blood Shadow walked up towards them.

"Huh? Ah! Crap. I forgot to tell you. I got engrossed with waiting for the results and… Go to Okudama Studios. As usual, let Hibiki know you're there as backup. Inspect the Wave Roads. And pay attention to Warp Points too. They might try to pull the same trick they did some months ago to begin with." Vadous ordered.

"Roger that." He saluted with the left hand.

Blood Shadow rushed down the corridor while Vadous and Tabuu headed into the command bridge: Vadous sat on the armchair while Tabuu merely hovered next to him.

"By the way… Has anything noticeable happened?"

"Yeah. Kurayami sent packages to the guys with stuff to try to scare them but they disposed of those to show the guy they're hardly impressed with those attempts. Copied the same thing Kanaya did."

"All of that "S&M" stuff… You humans sure are complicated creatures: wishing to harm others to fulfill something immaterial…" Tabuu grumbled with some annoyance.

"Yeah, I know. Dunno why."

"I'm sure my so-called "perfect" creators must've had a similar age at some point yet they were so arrogant that they deleted all traces of it and pretended they'd been born being a "perfect, gorgeous, beautiful, ideal Utopia"… When it was all artificial: emotions were suppressed, they all behaved like machines and they only wanted to expand their domains and subjugate others… To then steal their resources to use them to build crazy stuff… Like Duo…"

"Duo?"

"Oh, I didn't mention that? Duo is a perfect example of their arrogance: a piece of junk."

"What exactly is that?"

"A giant Navi riding a rocket… Travelling the Universe… And bestowing "judgment" to "evil"… It's programmed to annihilate "evil"… Even if that means crashing into a planet and blowing it up."

"E~H?" Vadous was horrified.

"Even if "evil" was just, say, 10% of the population. It made no difference: all "evil" had to be destroyed. When I learnt of the project I hacked into the control center and found its current location… I sabotaged the rocket so that it deviated off-course while Duo was in hibernation mode and ended up plunging into a black hole. There."

"So you destroyed that thing. Thank goodness! I don't want to image what would've happened if it'd reached Earth."

"Yeah, I know. That was another of my acts to break free of their arrogance. Serves them well. It's impossible to wipe out "evil": what you're doing is "evil" as well!"

"Of course it is! Blowing up a planet and dragging countless unrelated and innocent people along…!"

"So it's no wonder that they had that civil war afterwards: despite the appearances, each continent had its own ambitions and each planned to subjugate the others… So… One began the deal and the others replied so it eventually led to… MAD."

"Mutually Assured Destruction… The pillar of the Cold War… The fear of MAD… Deterrence…"

"Yeah. The guys of the continent thought their own missiles were stealth but it turned out they had insiders there and there from the other continents and they knew how to detect those. So they all attacked each other arrogantly thinking that they had some "ultimate shield" that would protect them from the counter-attack."

"I see. So that's how they ended up destroying each other."

"Well, some survived. And then they began to decline because most of their machines were rendered useless by the accumulated radiation. The weather worsened too… So they ended up where they are: barbaric clans that struggle to seize what little fertile land remains… One day they'll become extinct, I guess. The lesson is: arrogance and greed lead to great disasters." He concluded.

"And you were supposed to be a tool of them to help them find new planets to conquer and subjugate… They didn't remain in those planets, by the way?"

"No. They picked what they wanted and left: since they could easily recreate the materials through chemical engineering…"

"I see. Oh well. Let's wait for developments but I suspect we'll have some soon enough. Hikaru isn't the type to sit quiet. He's gotta be looking for a brawl with Omega by now."

08:54 AM (Japan Time)…

"… There you are! Omega!"

"Huh? My, my. Hikaru – chan's back. Did you play _go_?"

"Go? That chess-like game? NO!"

"Heh, heh. So then… Can you bite?"

"Of course! Heavenly Thunderbolt!"

"Oho. Hop! 1 Up! _It's me, Mario~_!"

"E~H?"

Gray Thunderbolt stumbled upon Omega on the Kodama Middle School rooftop as he was seemingly practicing hand-to-hand combat with an imaginary foe: he stopped and grinned as Gray Thunderbolt formed a gray spheroid of electricity and had it hover on the air: it randomly dropped a thunderbolt on Omega's location but he simply jumped and bounced higher using the spheroid as footing while laughing: Gray Thunderbolt gasped and, suddenly, Omega dived for him while extending his right foot forward: he hit his chest and the blow sent him flying and hitting the column of the basketball canister: he groaned and tried to get to his feet while Omega was in a hand combat pose.

"Grey Fox says: "fighting is a battle's basic"!"

"Grey Fox? Who the hell?" He grumbled.

"Don't mind it, Hikaru – chan! I'm a _retro_ lover." He snickered.

"This rascal…!"

"Beware! It's the curse! Of the Nameless Emperor!"

"HUH? What crap is that?"

"Dunno. Ask Warus Rockus Samus!"

"War Rock? Sheesh. I knew the guy was half-crazy but…!"

"It's called "innovative"! Uncle Mars Warrior says so! Hikaru – tan."

"Stop treating me like I was a girl!" He growled.

"You're one of those "otoko no ko" but instead of "child" you write "daughter" there… In short: a female-looking guy!"

"GKSGNDKSHTNGDHSSGBGNMS!" He growled something undecipherable followed by rage and frustration.

"Omega… Don't get cocky." Vadous sighed.

"Don't worry, _shachou_ ~! All's under control!"

"Gray THUNDER!"

"Oops."

"WHA?"

Gray Thunderbolt loaded his attack and shot it at Omega but he simply jumped to the right to dodge and the attack only hit the canister's pillar thus breaking it and making it fall into the ground: Gray Thunderbolt growled again.

"Not fair!"

"Do you really think the opponent will wait there to allow your attack to hit them? Do you even know what a battle is, man?" Omega made an exaggerated sigh.

"Of course I do! I battled Hoshikawa several times on the Nanska ruins! And made the guy sweat! And struggle!"

"Because he was reluctant. I'm not." Omega countered.

"Damn it all! That _naïve_ fool!" He grumbled.

"I think that that _naïve_ aspect of the fella is what makes him real. Now… Let's get down to business. My toy here will teach you what a battle is about, Mr. Smith." Omega drew a pyramidal green-colored energy saber with a white hilt.

"FINE! This time around I'm so gonna burn you up! And then _aibou_ will praise me! And I'll prove I'm useful! If the guy weren't so paranoid…!"

Gray Thunderbolt drew a couple of Elec Blades colored grey and jumped for Omega: he calmly placed the blade in an angle to be able to block both attacks: Gray Thunderbolt gasped in disbelief and Omega simply ducked, tossed the saber into the air and then gripped Gray Thunderbolt like in _judo_ to fling him forward and have him crash upon the ground: he quickly jumped into the air and caught the blade in mid-fall: he landed and aimed the blade at the guy's neck while looming over his head.

"You were saying?" He dully asked.

"E~H!"

"You picked a bad opponent. You're an amateur. You haven't had any real battles: I'm sure you could only fight Viruses or Heel Wizards or berserk Wizards. Not someone like me."

"Damn it! Not again!"

"Oho. So Tab – chan proved to be as though as a mountain?"

"I never liked that nickname!" Tabuu protested over the radio.

"Oh, ya were there? Thought you'd gone to the Everest."

"Why should I?"

"To prove you can ascend it by flying!"

"Like I would do something so pointless." Tabuu fumed.

"Gruh! Gray Thunder!"

"Huh? GRUWAH!"

"Hah! Gotcha!"

Gray Thunderbolt suddenly shot his attack at Omega taking profit of his distraction and warped away to try to attack Omega from behind but he quickly swung the saber and missed hitting him by mere inches: Gray Thunderbolt gasped and stepped back while Omega suddenly drew a gun with the left hand and shot a white energy ellipsoid: Gray Thunderbolt brought up his right arm to block it but the golden armor melted.

"E~H?"

"Plasma." Omega coolly announced.

"PLASMA~? You can control plasma?"

"Yeah. So? Feeling confident?"

"Like I would!"

"Hmpf. So? What are you up to?"

"I only want to prove my power! I dunno what _aibou_ ultimately aims for but I just wanna have some brawls!"

"And then you say you've improved."

"Yeah! Because crybaby Tsukasa can't get in the way! And I can go all out in brawls!"

"My bad for being a crybaby." A familiar voice rang out.

"Tsukasa!"

Tsukasa happened to be there and he had a serious look to his eyes: Gray Thunderbolt seemed to lose confidence all of a sudden.

"How could you, being born of my hatred and anger, understand? Being abandoned as a newborn in a junkyard… Like you were junk… Like you were a use and throw item… HOW COULD YOU UNDERSTAND?" He suddenly exploded.

Gray Thunderbolt was taken aback by Tsukasa's outburst and he was seemingly at a loss for words.

"Oi, Futaba…" Omega called out.

"… I'm sorry. It's not like me." He looked elsewhere and fumed.

"I don't pretend to understand, mind you. Nobody can understand how exactly you've felt across your life." Omega clarified.

"… Hikaru! You! You don't have any right to call me a "crybaby": never getting to know who your parents are… Can you understand that?"

"W-well…"

"I admit that I did have moments in which I hated everything around me but that didn't mean everyone who appeared in front of me was guilty of anything! And you had "fun" being a sadist! And things worsened when Gemini approached you: how you began to manipulate my memories to try to eventually make me believe I'd cooperated in some hideous crime and force me to stick around with you…!"

"Hmpf. No surprise. Seeing how the guy manipulated Cepheus to destroy Planet AM…" Omega wasn't surprised.

"At least that Kuroban man took you out of my head: but I'm not thankful to him in the least! Like I would be thankful to a criminal like that! Now: get out of my sight and hearing!"

"Hey! You owe me a big one! I did undergo all that training ya couldn't undergo when in Choina!"

"That wasn't training, damn it! It was S&M: torture! My legs ended up damaged and I had to spend months in rehabilitation! I got a year and a half of my life stolen from me forever! Don't dare talk so lightly about it: the despair almost destroyed me! GET OUT! BEFORE MY ANGER MAKES ME DESTROY YOU: I SHOULD'VE NEVER CREATED YOU!" Tsukasa now looked psychotic, even.

Gray Thunderbolt ran across the rooftop and jumped off to then land inside of a "portal" in mid-air: he vanished and Tsukasa panted: Omega rushed to him and supported him because his legs lost balance and he almost collapsed into the floor: he had a bad color to his face too.

"Futaba. Deep breath. Focus. Next lesson."

"Next lesson…? Ah! Chemistry…"

"Good. Focus on that and only that. Can you do that?" Omega instructed with a sigh.

"Y-yes, sir… I'm sorry, sir… I…"

"Don't mind it. You had to do it. Now go. I'll remain here…"

"R-roger, sir…"

"I'll ask Lartes to do a check-up to make sure your health is normal. Don't overdo it either."

"Y-yes, sir… Understood, sir…"

Tsukasa made some deep breaths and then calmly headed back inside the school building: Omega sighed.

"Guess it was inevitable. He's been building up a lot of things which he surely wanted to say before but was unable to." Vadous muttered.

"That young man has gone through too much torment. His emotions can turn unstable from one moment to the other." Tabuu deduced.

"That damned punk, messing it up… The guy should've gone pick a brawl with Sigma…" Omega fumed.

"Cursing and grumbling won't get us anywhere. Yet… I'm surprised that Hikaru seemed to be surprised to see Futaba there… Maybe he suspected things would end like this…"

"Could be. By the way… I think that chances are high that Hyde's behemoth is parked SES of Taiwan… There are reports of mysterious sounds and whispers of a "whale" patrolling the area…" Tabuu told Vadous in the meanwhile.

"Hum. I see. We should check it out."

"Was going to… I'll go. I'll bring results soon. Later."

"Later."

Tabuu apparently left while Omega was trying to fix the canister's column but was unable to.

"Guess they'll need to bring a new one." He guessed.

"Yeah. Anyway… It'd seem my new programming is working… Instead of splitting your personalities… I've integrated them in one… And some environments factors triggers aspects of the other…"

"Hum. I see. It feels natural and it seems difficult to believe I was so carefree a few minutes ago." Omega seemed to be surprised with himself, even.

"Remember, Omega. Pride doesn't guarantee victory."

"Alright. I don't need that. Say. Maybe those 2… K & K… Maybe they could be trying to rebuild Death Shadow?"

"Hmmm… Could be, yet… Where'd they get the data? I've got the hunch Death Shadow never thought of making a backup of his memories and files to begin with."

"Good point. So they might recreate the form but not the mind and not the abilities… Maybe they hope to impress us with a poorly done imitation of the guy…" Omega suggested.

"Like how they came up with all those "Anti" some months ago… And that "Twilight" imitator… Which we ended up believing…"

"Yeah. It sounded so logical and natural…"

"So… We've confirmed that Hikaru and Kuroban aren't in Zenay III and they aren't in Epsilon… They merely used it as a base to park their fleets in orbit and then get to Earth… It was a stop along their route… The planetoid Tabuu used as base was deserted as well… Not like it's easy to build things there, anyway."

"Of course. The surface is ice which is only a few tens of meters thick at the best… Like Europa, Jupiter's satellite."

"I know. Oh well. At least we can figure out where those other 2 duos are at so that's something. Let's keep an eye on them 24/7 and make sure to pretend we're still beating around the bush."

"Roger that. Guess I'll shake off the tension by doing some fighting training… Contact me if we get confirmation of Hyde's whereabouts."

"Obviously. Over."

Omega resumed his earlier training while humming a tune...

09:15 AM (Japan Time)…

"… You damned fool!"

"Says the guy!"

"What was that?"

"The guy came with the mood to settle the score: we had it pending for a lot of years! That's personal! And I didn't know that Omega could switch from carefree to serious in one instant! Like you'd done any better when facing PLASMA!"

"P-plasma? That red fool can use plasma?"

"How else do ya think this got melted? It's colored gold but it's a very strong alloy that doesn't melt under 1500 Celsius!"

"By the High One!"

Gray Thunderbolt was having a discussion through the radio while he sat inside of a small room that had only a bed and nothing else: the only light was a bare light bulb hanging from the ceiling and which was on: there were no windows and it surely wasn't wider than 3 meters and.

"When I get back from working on my plans… There'll be CONSEQUENCES!"

"You say that the whole time but always say "got no time to waste on acolytes" and do nothing." Gray Thunderbolt fumed.

"Hmpf." Kuroban scoffed.

"So you don't scare me, _Danna – sama_."

"You must call me "Prince"!"

"Like I ever will. I'm a grunt but a prideful grunt. I don't bow to anyone: I owe you big, that's true, but I didn't sign any document in which I was forced to bow before you. You might be a Prince – sama but your own kingdom disintegrated millennia ago. So you've got no kingdom to rule to begin with." He argued back.

"We've had this discussion already!"

"And you don't seem to get the point. I'M NOT GONNA KNEEL IN FRONT OF YOU! EVER!"

"Learn your place, acolyte!"

"I'm no acolyte! You told me "I need a powerful accomplice who knows the underground well"! I've got it recorded!"

"I said THAT? Damn it all. That's what happens when I get confident: I should've imposed more discipline! Like in a navy ship! Punishment for disobeying orders!"

"What, whip my back 100 times? Like it impresses me. I experienced that at least twice a day during my "stay" in that Choina mafia guy's basement where I was being trained into a sex slave."

"Hmpf!"

"I don't care if you come and tie me and rape me. I got done that at least 4 times a day too. I was tied the whole time, they'd drag me to the toilet to vent off and then back to the training room. The night in a small cell which was but raw stone and had barely no heating either. And butt naked for a year and a half. Blindfolded and gagged for most of the time too."

"Forgot that."

"How UNLIKE you."

"Whatever. I'll properly deal with your disobedience when "Wiita" is ready to crush those damned worms."

"Staking it all on one thing? You're no different than Cepheus, Orihime and King. They all failed, ya know?" He rolled his eyes.

"Hmpf. "Wiita" will be different. Because I'll pilot it myself. And remove those cancer cells from my way. Thus the On'Setsu shall rise again and rule the modern and barbaric world!"

"I don't care who rules who. I'm only sticking around because I owe you and that's all. Maybe one day we'll go each other's paths."

"Hmpf. Whatever."

The transmission ended and Gray Thunderbolt fumed as his Denpa – Henkan released and he became Hikaru: he sported an identical copy of Tsukasa's usual clothing set: he drew a couple of sunglasses from a pocket as well.

"Oi." A voice whispered: it came out of his Hunter – VG.

"Gurenna? That you?" He asked.

"Yeah. They don't suspect yet, am I right?"

"They don't seem to. Tsukasa didn't at the least. Guess what happened will further convince them." He shrugged.

"Good enough. I don't care what you guys do as long as you keep them busy."

"That means that you'll beat us when our usefulness expires?"

"Kuroban is too prideful yet you… Have potential. I'm interested on gaining money through the underground. And that means using a gay club… I'm sure you could show them how to properly train their subjects, am I right?" Gurenna suggested.

"That sounds interesting. I could prove that I've indeed become a super sadist. I'll make those meek guys fear me." He looked interested.

"Good. I'll contact you on another occasion. Until then… Keep on making them believe I and Kuroban are the same subject. I'll impersonate the guy if the need for it comes. See you."

"OK, _Danna_ … Tell me if there's a deal…"

"Of course. And don't worry: unlike Kuroban, I'll let you be free. I only wish to see the profits. That's all. Stay sharp: those guys aren't idiots."

"Gotcha, Gurenna… See ya."

"Look forward to it. Heh, heh, heh…"

Hikaru finished the call and chuckled under his breath while snickering…


	13. Chapter 13: Emerald Rondo

**Chapter 13: Emerald Rondo**

21:01 PM (Taiwan Time), Saturday February the 3rd…

"… Are you sure this is the place, Shinobi?"

"Yes, my Master. I discovered it during my scouting incursions… A "non-existent" basement… Seems to have been a natural cave but then the manor was built atop it…"

"Amusing. So what's here?"

"A research facility… And they seem to be researching some kind of jewel, surprisingly enough… So I thought we could figure out why they're so interested on it and get it…"

"Excellent! Heh, heh. Maybe I can auction it on the underground and earn a fortune… I should first have it examined by an appraiser… To get an idea of its worth… I can always pretend it's a family inheritance. They won't ask questions."

" _Kuu, kuu, kuu!_ "

"Hum. A jewel being the target of a research… Rings a bell somewhere in my memories but I'm taking a while to dig them up…"

"Bah! There'll be time to remember later on. Show me the intrusion route, Shinobi!"

"Roger!"

Assassin Shinobi and Phantom Black were talking as they stood atop a hill overlooking a city: a big manor was placed next to the foothills: Assassin chuckled while Phantom seemed to be remembering something.

"There's a ventilation shaft that leads directly into the main lab. There's no vigilance because the opening is 3 meters from the ground… But they didn't take us into account."

"Good!"

They warped into the backyard of the manor and found a ventilation shaft.

"I'll remove the cover."

"Good!"

Assassin Shinobi removed the cover and they both jumped down into a small cavern that had about four consoles linked to a central glass tube which contained a piece of raw ore that glowed with an emerald glow: Phantom Black grinned while Assassin Shinobi looked around as if expecting someone to be here.

"This ore…" Phantom muttered.

"Is it valuable? Mu ore?"

"No, it's not Mu ore… There was a research on these but I think it got cancelled… This ore, this ore… Why was it being researched…? I think it has some special properties…"

"Hum. The researchers call this project "Emerald Rondo"… It's not too valuable yet… Some very ancient documents suggest it was regarded as "divine treasure from the heavens"… And it's got something very, very odd to it."

"What is it?"

"Its atomic structure… It's too perfect to be natural. It's an artificially improved ore… And it seems capable of assimilating environmental EM waves into its body and store them as energy…"

"Sounds like an OOPArt, doesn't it?" Phantom Black remembered.

"Ah! So that's why they were researching it… I think they wanted to figure out if it was possible to create stuff like the OOPArts but in a more industrial scale…" Phantom recalled.

"I see. These guys must hope to make of this a new "clean" energy source and patent it…" Phantom Black rubbed his chin.

"Indeed, Hyde – sama! It'd seem experiments are progressing well and now they're trying to draw possible buyers in… While finishing work on a system to demonstrate the potential…"

"Oh well. It was a nice discovery but it doesn't seem to be that valuable: I've got the hunch that unlike coal and such there isn't that much abundance of this thing." Phantom Black sighed.

"I am sorry." He bowed.

"Bah. Don't mind it. It was worth the thrill. A change of airs."

"I finally found it… My kingdom's treasure! No barbarians are going to defile it anymore… And even less descendants of that loathsome Mu Empire!" Kuroban's voice rang out.

"Kuroban!" Phantom Black gasped.

"I'll dispose of you lowlifes later… I'll be having it back and…!"

DZING!

"Not so fast, Kuroban… I get it… You need this for that "Wiita" machine you're building!"

"How did you…?"

Assassin Shinobi quickly shattered the glass with his _katana_ and picked the ore with his left hand while looking around.

"I overheard Akatsuki discussing it!"

"Damn it."

"You want it? Catch me!"

"And me too! Mwah, hah, hah!"

"Damn it all!"

Both warped back to the top of the hill and looked around: soon enough a "portal" formed on the ground and Spade Magnets followed by Dia Iceburn emerged while having a murderous look to their eyes: Assassin Shinobi focused and quickly dashed forward, jumped into the air, drew the _katana_ from the sheath and performed a neat and fast slash: Spade Magnets' head fell to the ground, beheaded, and it deleted followed by the main body: Kuroban gasped from somewhere.

"More speakers…" Phantom detected.

"I've got an idea! Have a present from me, Kuroban! Break Count Bomb!"

Phantom Black laughed and tossed it inside of the hole as it was shrinking and it got inside just as it closed: there was an explosion somewhere (transmitted over the speakers) followed by a roar of agony: Assassin Shinobi had managed to, in the meanwhile, behead Dia Iceburn as well and defeat her: he landed back on the ground and sheathed the _katana_ while chuckling under his breath.

" _Chii! Chii! Ippaii! Chii!_ " Assassin laughed.

"Satisfied? You had your dose of "blood"… Or, rather, of data." Assassin Shinobi sighed.

"Gruh! Grah…! Damn them all! Mu Empire! Getting in my way over and over again, humiliating my Father's pride and name! When "Wiita" is ready then… I'LL CRUSH YOU INTO DUST! And I'll find "Oreichalcos" elsewhere! HAH!" Kuroban grumbled.

"Ah! I remembered. Yeah. This ore is named "Oreichalcos"… And it belonged to that guy's kingdom."

"Odd. I thought it was part of the Atlantis myths?" Phantom Black frowned.

"Maybe the origin got distorted over time and it ended up being associated with equally mythical "Atlantis"… Maybe someone heard tales of Mu but didn't know the name so they coined a name." Phantom suggested, unsurprised.

"Hum! I see. Let's analyze this further. It might be the key for a supreme victory over those tabloid envoys!"

"The speakers are gone." Assassin Shinobi reported.

"Hah! Kuroban. You didn't see that one coming. Serves you well. Let's rush to the base and begin analysis on this. Luckily we parked it elsewhere: I had the hunch that remaining too much time in a single spot could make the others detect us!"

"You're unusually sharp, Hyde."

"Hmpf! A nobleman descendant of Vienna and London's Hyde Manor won't let such tabloid envoys humiliate me anymore!"

"Whatever. Like I care."

"Let's go! Shinobi! Turn our "eyeball" on!"

"Roger!"

An "eyeball" formed and opened a "portal" which warped them back into the behemoth's interior: they released their transformations and headed into a room that had some machines there.

"Let's leave the computer scanning the thing. I need to continue reading _Macbeth_! "Fair is foul, and foul is fair! Hover through the fog and filthy air!"…" He quoted, laughing.

"Sure, sure."

"Huh? Fair is foul and foul is fair? I didn't get the point."

"Meh! Some witches: don't heed them! They bring tragedy! Hah!"

"Huh? G-guess that, yeah. I'm off to my room for a nap."

"Good! Let there be conspiracies! Maybe those witches will do me favor and haunt Kuroban!"

"Hyde~… Witches don't exist and ya know that." Phantom sighed.

"Don't rob of my glory, hybrid tabloid emissary!"

"Yeah, yeah. Sure, sure. I'm off too."

" _Kuu, kuu, kuu!"_

"You shut up and let me properly rest."

"No! Wait! I get it! The witches will power me up! Mwah, hah, hah!"

"Man. He got cocky AGAIN… Let's hope the guy eventually cools down!"

"Y-yeah. Let's hope that."

06:06 AM (Japan Time), Sunday February the 4th…

"… Aha! Found you. I knew you'd drop by here sooner or later so it was worth the wait… Kuroban!"

"Who the…? Omega!"

"Same one. Show me your moves!"

"Sheesh! You're asking for it, damned fool!"

"Hmpf."

Omega had been hiding in the Dealer Hideout next to the giant roulette where King had used to be at: a figure came in through a "portal" that formed in the ground and Omega jumped in front of the figure that turned out to be Kuroban.

Kuroban was a man on his 20s and about a meter and eighty tall: he wore armor all over his body.

The armor's helmet design was compact and thick included silver plating around the neck and its base, a main purple and black coloring, black shades and a green symbol which looked like a unicursal hexagram colored pale green and having some unknown runes written on its circular edge painted on the forehead.

He wore some curious armor over his body: it was colored with purple tones on the outer edges but black on the center: the same forehead emblem was set on the middle of his chest.

His shoulders were black ellipsoids with purple-colored outer edges and having some other green fluorescent runic symbols drawn over them: his arms "skin" was black in color and the armor over the forearms had an external golden rim from which three parallel golden lines extended until the fingertips.

The feet armor started at the knees and used a tint of purple for the outer edges but the main armor kept on using the black motif: silver-colored lines extended parallel to each other until the feet fingertips.

The unarmored body "skin" was also black in color and had intricate green fluorescent patterns running down its sides, front and rear.

His nose and jaw were exposed and he was annoyed.

"Come! Dexia Sword! Aristeros Shield!"

Kuroban materialized a sword with a white body and hilt which he picked with the right hand and a white shield with a three-layered "unicursal hexagram" on his left hand: he got into combat stance.

"Hmpf! "Wiita" is over 98% completed! It's a matter of hours before I come CRUSH you ALL!" He proclaimed.

"We'll see about that. Wait and see."

"Hra~h!"

"Hah!"

Kuroban suddenly lifted his sword arm and thrust the shield forward while running down the stairs towards Omega but he calmly drew his saber and gripped it with both hands: he blocked the incoming attack and both struggled in the deadlock: Omega suddenly frowned but then resumed his serious stance.

"What the hell is that "Wiita" thing?"

"Hah! A weapon capable of wiping you out in the blink of an eye! It has infinite and unending power!"

"A wonder weapon?"

"Wha~t? You damned plebeian, insulting the Royal Family's wisdom and power!" He growled.

"Hit a vibe, eh? Did you forget to cleanse your teeth?"

"None of your damned business! Speak for yourself!"

"I know I needn't do that."

"Then your question was pointless!"

"Maybe yea maybe nay. Ask the forest witches."

"What nonsense is that?"

"Who knows?"

"Damn it. I can't break through!"

"Not enough gym sessions, Kuban?"

"YOU SHALL PAY FOR THAT AFFRONT WITH YOUR LIFE!"

"Whoa. I'm sure even the South Pole penguins heard that one."

Kuroban suddenly jumped backwards to break out of the deadlock and quickly thrust the sword forward to try to get through Omega's defenses but he merely jumped into the air and used some jets set on his boots' soils to propel himself a couple meters away so Kuroban's thrust didn't meet the goal and because he'd put too much strength into that move his balance was compromised and he collapsed into the floor: he quickly rose, grumbling and placing his shield forward: it glowed and shot a powerful emerald green beam at Omega but he simply dived for the ground and the beam shot above him until it met one of the columns, bending it: Omega got back to his feet and used the blade to stop the shield which Kuroban had thrown at him like it was a Frisbee: Kuroban then jumped into the air and swung down the blade with both hands to produce an emerald green "Sonic Boom": Omega picked Kuroban's shield and the "Sonic Boom" bounced off it and hit Kuroban instead: he got propelled until the roulette and crashed with it, bending part of it, and tossing the sword at his right: Omega then drew his gun.

"So?"

"You dared to stain the Sacred Shield, blessed by the High One, with your filthy heretical hands! That sin and offense means DEATH!"

"Yeah. Like I care. "Gods" are but the means several civilizations that didn't understand the workings of the natural world used to try to explain _why_ things like storms, earthquakes and such happened. They don't exist: "religion" is but a means to believe "some force" will be there to save you or help you… Sorry, but it sounds like you're running away from reality. Reality is so frightening that you want to believe there's someone who will change it and make it better. But reality is reality. So then?"

"I didn't give you permission to lecture me!"

"Pride doesn't allow one to win battles."

"Of course it does! It motivates you!"

"It can consume you, too, if you're not careful enough."

"Whatever! Anger and hatred make me stronger! Once "Wiita" is completed, I'll use the Oreichalcos' power to capture you lowlifes' hatred and anger too! And then I'll be invincible! Together with the 3-layered "Oreichalcos Boundary"!"

"Looking up to Dartz, eh?"

"Dartz? Who the hell is that?"

"Dunno. Maybe I made the guy up here and now?"

"You won't fool me! Who's that? An interloper?"

"Maybe so."

"FINE! I'll find them and kill them before they can get in my way! That man will curse you forever!" Kuroban laughed in a psychotic manner.

"And what if he was already dead and buried?"

"WHAT!"

"I didn't say he was alive. I merely wondered if you looked up to the guy: you seem to have a pretty dense head."

"Damn them all!"

"That isn't the best you can do, obviously enough. You're not in the mood to show your "true power" yet, I see."

"Of course not! I save it up to WIPE YOU OFF!"

"I can hear you. No need to yell." Omega dully replied.

"By the High One! Just you wait…! In a few hours' time…!"

"You're going to shave your beard?"

"HUH? Of course not! Fool!"

"Ah. Just saying."

"No words will save you from the destructive power brought forth by the almighty "Wiita", blessed by the High One!"

"What did I just say? Gods don't exist."

"THEY EXIST! I SAY SO!"

"I told you as well: don't yell."

"I do whatever I want!"

"Even marrying sans your father's consent?"

"OF COURSE NOT!"

"Ah. If you don't give me specifics, then… "Anything I want" is very vague, you know?" Omega shrugged.

"Sheesh. I'm losing my patience and I must look so miserable in front of my old man."

"Oh? Your "old man"? So you two don't get along, eh?"

"What! Did I just say that? I mean… In front of the King! I was thinking of Vadous, damn it all!"

"Oi, oi. You and Boss can't have more than 5 years of difference. A guy on his late 20s isn't an "old man" last time I checked."

"Whatever! I'll be back! Soon!"

Kuroban flipped into the air and jumped inside of a mid-air "portal" to vanish: Omega shrugged and made an exaggerated sigh.

"Did you catch all of that, Boss?"

"Of course I did. I better mobilize the Satella Police. Something tells me the guy is really intending on doing something today. At least we managed to intrude a tracker program into Hyde's behemoth so we can keep him controlled. So we only need to focus on these 2. They better be ready!"

08:19 AM (Japan Time)…

"… So… Kuroban finally showed up on the flesh and is seemingly about to open the doors of Hell wide."

"In essence."

"Kuroban…!"

"Subaru!"

"I'm sorry, Akatsuki – san."

"Now, now. Subaru – kun. Calm down."

"At times like these, Subaru – chan, I'd suggest a Rolling Turning Strawberry of Good Fortune."

"Excuse me~?"

"Hakase. That is wrong. It's Freshly Picked Juicy Strawberry of Good Morning."

"Oh my."

Akatsuki was talking with Vadous via a video-conference on the WAXA Command Room: Subaru clenched his right fist when Kuroban's name was brought up: Akatsuki scolded him and Misora tried to encourage him: Dr. Yoiri brought up another of her "knowledge" pieces and Acid, as always, had to correct her.

"And what's that?" Akatsuki frowned.

"It'd seem it was a campaign to encourage consuming strawberries on summer time." Acid explained.

"Oh, is that so? I thought it was a milk shake with strawberry."

"Trouble, ladies and gentlemen!" Utagai rushed in.

"What's happened, Utagai – kun?" Amachi asked.

"There was this letter on the vending machine tray!" He announced as he drew a letter with a black envelope.

"Acid!"

"Roger. No explosive materials or gas detected. No toxic materials or gas detected."

"Good. I'll open it."

"What does it say?" The Chief asked.

"Huh… It's in German!"

"German? How odd. Hyde?" Vadous wondered.

"Why German?" Misora asked.

"Austria's main idiom is German, too."

"Ah! I see. I thought they had their own."

"Acid…"

"Translating… "The Grand and Excellent Hyde addresses the Satella Police ladies and gentlemen! Sometime next week, starting on Monday, you will be treated to a piece of classical and sublime chamber orchestra by the Grand Magnificent Patriotic Passionate Literate Blessed Hyde, descendant of Vienna and London's Hyde Manor! Farewell!"…"

"Typical of the guy." Akatsuki grumbled.

"Totally. We've seen the guy trying to conduct a virtual orchestra before but it's a chaos. Should try to write extravaganzas… Like the Clover Extravaganza…" Vadous sighed.

"I found another one dropped in the yard." Ryuusuke came in.

"K & K next?" Akatsuki sighed.

"Yeah. Says this… "Until that annoying guy stops bothering us then we're just going to sit and watch. The real deal will come later."…"

"Well. We know where they are so as soon as we finish up this deal we can raid their hideout and try to catch them back."

"Same for Hyde… If we disable their "eyeballs" then…"

"They won't be able to run away so easily."

"But let's not get too confident either."

"Alright."

"Mwah, hah, hah, hah… Missed me, Bertie~?"

"No way! Rock?"

"YO! YO! YO! Moon Ace, on the Ace and the Moon!"

"Not you too!"

"I didn't let them free!"

"Of course you didn't!"

War Rock and Moon Disaster suddenly showed up there to the exasperation of the whole room and Vadous was baffled.

"BLACK ACE~!" He roared.

"Security flaw detected."

"DETAILS!"

"Backdoor activated through timer."

"Damn it all! Virus Daemon again! The damned bastard's ghost is laughing at me from the other side! Like in December!"

"And then there was a building builder of buildings that built a built of buildings and a commanding that commanded a command and an envoy and that envied a package that…!" Moon Disaster began to sing.

"Mwah, hah, hah! Bertie~ is the king of the triangle~!" War Rock flipped.

"Like we care." Daigo fumed.

"Not so fast! Emergency protocol: shutdown!"

"E~H? NO WAY~!"

"Way! You stay quiet for another season!"

Both suddenly paralyzed and a "portal" opened to suck them back inside: Vadous growled and was pretty much annoyed.

"SCAN THE WHOLE SYSTEMS AND REPORT ANYTHING OUT OF PLACE WHICH ISN'T AUTHORIZED BY ME!"

"Roger."

"Boss. Calm down. It's not like it's the end of the world." Lartes walked into the bridge and tried to calm him down.

"I know, but…! Ah! Whatever!"

"You know… I just remembered something… We could have some Inspiring Coffee…"

"Hakase. It's Imaging Tea. And it stopped being made 14 years ago because it was a commercial failure."

"Oh, is that so? I could swear one of the children here was drinking some the other day… Or maybe I mistook it when it was something else?" She wondered.

"Of course it was something else."

"My, my. One's insight…"

"Yes, hakase~… We know." The group sighed.

"Huh? Wait a minute… An encoded email… It'll take a bit of a while to decode it but I wouldn't be surprised if Kuroban's announcing where he's gonna show and when."

"Alright. We'll wait for the analysis' results, then."

"I brought some coffee." One Operator came in with a tray having a coffee pot and some plastic cups.

"Good. We'll need it to stay sharp."

"Thank you very much."

"Nothing like a morning coffee to shake off the sleepiness!"

Everyone drank the coffees and then they resumed what they were doing: the video-conference had ended and now several sub-screens were being displayed: Subaru and Misora sat on chairs at some distance while Akatsuki talked with Acid, Dr. Yoiri told something to the Chief, Queen Tia was analyzing something with one terminal and the Operators did their job: Subaru's Hunter – VG rang and Lartes appeared onscreen.

"Subaru… Who brought the coffee?"

"Huh? One of the operators. A lady. Why?"

"Yours and Misora's cups had sleeping pills on them. But your nanomachines nullified those."

"What!" Misora gasped.

"What did you say?" Akatsuki gasped.

"Speaking of which: that girl reminded me of someone… Ah! Of you, Hibiki…" Queen Tia gasped.

"Kanaya. Heck. Luckily she forgot about the nanomachines: she dared to set a foot here, even!" Misora fumed.

"It's useless to search for her… I'm sure she must be away… Maybe she didn't forget but actually was trying to play a psychological trick… Well. Blood's stationed on the Okudama Studios so I doubt that she can come close to the place."

"Then I'm going there just in case. Kuroban might not show up until the evening for all we know. Later!" She rushed out.

"I'll contact Gonta to see if nothing's happened in the town. I don't trust Kanaya not to try to take someone hostage." Subaru rushed out too.

"Alright. We'll contact you once we decode the mail. Be careful!"

"Do not lower the guard, either."

"Roger!"

"Those 2 come later. Now… Kuroban! Get ready. It all ends today!"


	14. Chapter 14: Strings

**Chapter 14: Strings**

21:04 PM (Thailand Time), Sunday February the 4th…

"… So this is the place… A Wave Road square above these castle ruins in Thailand…"

"Data suggests this was the castle of the On'Setsu Kingdom capital city in ancient times but it was abandoned a long, long time ago."

"I see."

"Nostalgia factor? Must think it powers him up."

"Yeah. Wouldn't surprise me."

"I've come to expose the true colors of the fake prophets…!"

"Coming…!"

"Starting by YOU!"

"Fine. Saw it coming, anyway."

Acid Ace, Rock Man and Harp Note were standing in a wide Wave Road square over the ruins of a castle and its perimeter: most of it had been overrun by the jungle and there wasn't any city close by: the lights of one could be spotted several kilometers SSE: the 3 of them had been chatting until Kuroban's voice rang out and a "portal" formed on the ground so the guy emerged from there: Rock Man merely stepped forward while Kuroban looked around.

"I can sense you! Mu dog!"

"So what." Burai replied from close by.

Kuroban then spotted him standing in a Wave Road a couple meters higher and running parallel to the square's right side: he was crossing his arms and looked unimpressed.

"Since you're so eager to prove your power then do so. If Rock Man isn't capable of overcoming you, which I doubt, then I'll properly take care of you lowlife." Burai dully announced.

"HMPF! Fine. I'll have your neck later! First comes the damned fake prophet!"

"Bring it on already. It's late." Rock Man taunted.

"Silence! Do not order the Prince! Engage! Oreichalcos Boundary!"

Kuroban shield drawing glowed and the same drawing formed on his feet: it quickly grew in size until it encompassed him and Rock Man and formed a semi-invisible emerald energy dome: Kuroban roared as a black and purple "aura" surrounded his body and the same drawing formed on his forehead: his eyes seemed to glow crimson underneath his helmet's shades and he chuckled.

"ABSOLUTE POWER!" He roared.

"Nice special effects. Did you hire pros?" Rock Man taunted next.

"DIE!"

"I object. Hop."

"HUH? IMPOSSIBLE!"

Kuroban suddenly thrust forward at a high speed but Rock Man only had to step to the left a couple steps for Kuroban to miss and hit the dome: he was bounced off and he ended up sitting on the ground: he groaned and stood up while Rock Man merely looked on with his arms crossed just like Burai.

"It can't be!"

"Omega – san taught me to read body language. When I saw the way your muscles tensed and moved I deduced you would thrust forward. So I anticipated your move."

"What nonsense is that?"

"It's not nonsense. It's a fact."

"Lies! Lies by fake prophets!"

"Reality distortion fields don't help you win either. Darkus Mors."

"KUROBAN HOWSAD!"

"You're too slow, Mors. Too predictable. You'll have to do better than that. Count Dooku says so." Omega suddenly showed up outside the dome and taunted with a snicker.

"SLOW? PREDICTABLE? NO! I AM INVINCIBLE!"

"… Hum, hum! I see. Prove it." Omega looked like he was up to something.

"Should I…?" Rock Man asked Omega.

"Save it up. We'll need it if he brings out the "Wiita", whatever that might be to begin with."

"True, sir. Roger, sir."

"Fool! You lowered the guard! DIE!"

Kuroban swung the blade but Rock Man vanished in a cloud of smoke and left a log behind: he appeared behind Kuroban and swung a Giant Axe to damage him: Kuroban groaned and quickly turned around: he thrust with the sword but Rock Man placed a boulder on the path so it bounced off it: Kuroban was getting annoyed and Rock Man was unimpressed: Kuroban then lifted his sword upwards and some streaks of energy jumped into the blade: he laughed and aimed it at Rock Man to shoot a thick green beam of energy but Rock Man merely formed the Black Hole X Battle Card and swallowed it up: Kuroban gasped but then the Virus opened the mouth and shot it back at Kuroban: it hit him fully and he met the dome again: he groaned and stood up.

"This can't be! I, a true prophet, am losing to a fake prophet!" Kuroban groaned.

"Ruling over people by force and intimidation isn't being a savior last time I checked." Acid Ace taunted.

"Silence, you herd of southern barbarians!"

"Are you really Kuroban?" Omega suddenly asked.

"How stupid. Of course I am! The one and only!"

"You're too weak and stupid to begin with. The Kuroban I fought some time ago was smart and powerful."

"One question: what happened when Mu invaded this castle?"

"Like I'd know. They surely raided it with their army!"

"Then you're not Kuroban."

"What!"

"Where's the Ultimate Orb?"

"Ulti… what?"

"Another proof you're not Kuroban. Give it up. Your frequency is that of a DH human but that's camouflage to hide that you're a Wizard in the shape of Kuroban! Same with Hikaru."

"Thought as much…" Acid Ace muttered.

"Then why did we…?" Harp Note asked.

"To make the true culprit get cocky…"

"I see. So then… That must mean that… "Gurenna" is the true culprit and was pretending to be Kuroban… And to reinforce the impression he arranged for these 2 imitators." Rock Man deduced.

"As expected of you guys." The voice of "Gurenna" rang out.

"Who…?" The fake Kuroban demanded.

"The puppeteer! The conductor of the "Marionette Symphony"!"

"It can't be! I'm the grand and mighty Kuroban! I'll kill you yet!"

"Hah. You're weak. You're but a distraction. Your role has expired now that you've been found out. Weak die. Strong survive. That's the rule of nature. Survival of the strongest!" "Gurenna" scoffed.

"DIE, DIE, DIE~!"

"Useless."

"Show up already, "Gurenna"!"

"Of course. Right now."

The air rumbled and everyone struggled to keep their balance: a large mechanical hand made of a purple material and having four thin fingers suddenly emerged from a gigantic "portal" that was growing in size: it gripped the fake Kuroban and it roared as it began to be deleted while releasing "Crimson": it soon got deleted and the "Crimson" flew inside the "portal" as the right hand showed up next: the group jumped to Wave Road Burai was at and looked on with angst as a gigantic mole emerged from the "portal": it soon totally emerged and loomed over them: all color left their faces.

"Behold! This is "Wiita"!"

"By all the…"

The "Wiita" was a gigantic robot easily over 6 or 7 meters tall that was hovering over the square.

Its main body was humanoid in shape and made of some purplish material: the head a central "eye" that emitted a thin menacing reddish glow as it was underneath what seemed to be the upper head.

A large mass of a greenish/grayish material and which seemed to be further pieces of it was spread starting over the shoulders and towards the rear: two gigantic hands with six fingers each could be made out of the several pieces there.

"And then you say that you wouldn't fall for the same trick twice. How disappointing, Akatsuki. You got totally hooked in: as long as it fulfilled your expectations then… You wouldn't question it." "Gurenna" chuckled and his voice echoed from within the machine.

"Where are you?" Rock Man demanded.

"In the cockpit, of course. I've got 360 view of my surroundings thanks to the outer body sensors."

"You wouldn't be Virus Daemon, right?" Rock Man tried asking.

"No. I am not. I'm a nostalgic face."

"Nostalgic face? It's not Gemini." Rock Man muttered.

"That voice gives me a bad vibe." Acid Ace muttered.

"Same here." Acid admitted.

"Hah. It'd seem your memory files have become rusty!"

"Be quiet." Acid grumbled.

"Hit a vibe? _Kyoudai_!"

" _Kyoudai_? No way! You're…!"

The front plate of the chest cavity suddenly split in two and swung outwards: the pilot became visible and it turned out to be someone they all knew: Grave Joker.

"JOKER!"

"Indeed! It's been a while, Akatsuki! Ever since the 2nd battle of Omicron… You did bring me down there!"

"Then why are you back?" Acid Ace demanded.

"Those 2, Kurayami and Kanaya, prepared a spare body for me. When you defeated me… My consciousness files and memories were transferred to the spare body but decided to sit and watch things unfold. I then found that a lot of data had been left behind on one of the terminals which was isolated from the general network…" He announced.

"Heck! And then you got the idea to create these 2 fakes?"

"Yes! As sharp as usual, Akatsuki." He snickered.

Acid Ace merely grumbled under his breath.

"Yet… It would seem there was a lack of data about Kuroban… Hence why the behavior and all was so incoherent and exaggerated… On the other hand there was plenty of data on Gray Thunderbolt. And thinking it over these last few days I saw far more potential on that man."

"So that's why he isn't here. You let him loose."

"Indeed. I don't care what he does."

"And in that "data" you found all of the names and such you've been using insofar?"

"Yes. I picked "Gurenna" because it means "Commander". I felt like it was fitting because I AM in charge." He snickered again.

"And you plan on giving this thing to King?"

"Mr. King? Oh no. I have no use for him anymore. He did help me bring out my full power but that's all. I was merely using him to get to Meteor G and absorb its gigantic power. Then I would be complete. Yet I underestimated you and Rock Man. A gross mistake. Yet not even I am perfect so…" He shrugged.

"So in the end no – one in Dealer was loyal to King, huh? No wonder: being the bastard the guy is…" Acid Ace wasn't too surprised.

"And you rescued K & K because you wanted them to put pressure to us but, at the same time, because you owed them?"

"Of course. Ironically enough it'd seem they don't remember about them having written that material. Maybe they did it a long time ago, before you found them in Omicron, and had shrugged it off."

"… Wait. How do you know that THEY wrote it?"

"It was signed "The Ancient Darkness" so…"

"Hmmm…" Omega looked like he mistrusted that.

"What are you implying?"

"Maybe someone else put that there and wanted to make you think K & K had done it. To motivate you to free them."

"What! You mean I've been a marionette of someone else…? Of the dead Virus Daemon, you mean?"

"Yeah. Would fit with the guy. I can totally picture it."

"Hmpf. Fine. It's a shame but there's nothing I can do about it. Let's get down to business. I'll show it to you… The power of "Wiita"… And I will fulfilled my "Reason"… That is… "Fulfill my purpose"! That is, to use this power!" He laughed.

The hatches quickly shut and an energy field formed over the surface of the "Wiita" main body: it suddenly materialized Grave Joker's "Destroy Missiles" and they began to fly towards the group: they dispersed in different directions and began to shoot attacks at the "Wiita" but none seemed to work because they bounced off the energy shielding: the missiles were still following the combatants so they had to switch their attention to repelling them: "Wiita" suddenly swung and shot the right arm forward to catch Burai and began to crush him: a grayish beam shot from the palm of one of the six-fingers hands and, upon hitting him, it cancelled his DH: the robot let go of Solo and he fell towards the ground but Omega quickly warped him using a "portal" into the surface: Omega jumped and dodged the left hand which had tried to catch him next: he cursed under his breath.

"If we lower the guard it can take us out easily!"

"Yeah… It's infected the Hunter – VG with some virus or something like that and my DH program is locked… It'd seem there's a deactivation code but that's 13 characters long! It'd take AGES to try each possible combination!" Solo cursed as he interacted with his device.

"Did I ever say I would play fair?" Grave Joker taunted.

"Sheesh." Acid Ace grumbled.

"Eat plasma!"

"Heh, heh, heh. You fell for the trap! Omega!"

"What!"

Omega shot one of his plasma rounds at the "Wiita" but Grave Joker laughed as one of the six-fingered hands detached and placed the palm in the path of the plasma round: the round bounced off inches away from making contact and headed back for Omega yet he jumped off.

"Fuck. EM fields that repel plasma." He guessed.

"So plasma won't work either. Damn it." Rock Man cursed.

"I've been trying to analyze its frequency but it's constantly shifting: I thought I could create a similar one to counter it but… No luck." Harp Note told them.

"The guy didn't come out here unprepared, obviously enough. But there might be a method yet… Sigma!"

"Roger, sir!"

"Huh? What?"

Sigma suddenly dropped from higher in the sky while thrusting his blade downwards: he was riding atop the lower edges and gripping the hilt as if to add further mass and speed to it: the blade impacted the field behind the head and produced a flash: large streaks of energy began to jump off in all directions from that point and the field flickered all across its surface: Sigma put more force into it and the energy release became more intense until it had all been vented off and the field vanished.

"I knew it. There's a limit to how much mass it can bear: if we applied enough speed and strength in a concentrated point then it would be forced to vent the excess energy off: but since the energy greatly exceeded that of the field's limit then it was forced to vent the whole of it off." Omega calmly explained.

"Hum! Fine. I wasn't planning on relying on that field forever, anyway. You might have beaten the field, but I can still repel plasma. And this armor is stronger than it may seem at a first glance. Hah!"

"Wiita" suddenly spun clockwise at a mad speed thus creating a whirlwind that began to suck everything towards it: Sigma got sucked in and then slapped away by one of the six-fingered hands: the others struggled to pull away but were then bombarded by the missiles: they held on, somehow, and managed to warp away before the "cancel beams" could hit them: Sigma had warped away to safety too and was in one piece too: "Wiita" stopped spinning and hovered as it scanned the terrain.

"Hum. That was close. But there's more in store."

"Heck." Rock Man cursed.

"Hah!"

The two six-fingered hands' fingers suddenly lost their top and became gum barrels which shot wide lasers almost as wide as a human: they caused explosions wherever they hit and the combatants had to deal with those plus the missiles while dodging the attempts by "Wiita" to try to catch them: a figure silently dropped in from above.

"Charged shotgun shot!"

"Huh? What!"

Blood Shadow had landed on the back next to the head and placed his shotgun's barrels attached to the head: he shot and let the recoil push him back as the attacks penetrated through the armor and damaged some internal components.

"Hum! Clever… I've lost a 45 degrees radius of vision so it's reduced to 315 degrees… Which means I've got a blind spot… Or so you'd think! But I've got a radar and I can detect your movements nevertheless, Blood Shadow! Regret challenging me! Fire!"

The lasers and the missiles focused on Blood Shadow and he warped to escape they were still locked on: he suddenly formed a purple "double" of himself and made it fly towards the "Wiita": the weapons impacted the "double" and it silently detonated while forming a shockwave: it vaporized some of the rear armor upon contact exposing internal systems and circuitry.

"That was… an anti-matter body!" Grave Joker gasped.

"Boss has been researching on it and found out how to create one: this one was but a tenth of my mass. Imagine if it'd been about my mass: the damage would've been greater."

"Hum. I had calculated the possibility but thought he would be afraid of using such a dangerous element…" He regained his composure.

"Huh? Ah! Heck."

Blood Shadow gasped and cursed when he saw how a new plate of armor formed over the exposed area and it seemed to be thicker than before, even: the lasers and missiles locked on him again so this time around he flung a grenade into the air: the attacks blew it up but it was a chaff grenade so the targeting system turned berserk and began to aim at random: Grave Joker's grumble was picked up by the mike and echoed outside of "Wiita" as he quickly spun the body to show the front and thrust both hands forward: Burai suddenly showed up and cut off both hands by their wrists.

"What!"

"Took the opportunity to send Solo a copy of the DH program." Vadous announced over Blood Shadow's radio.

"Hum! A factor I failed to take into account. I've let these attacks take too much of my attention. Bah. It matters not. The hands' armor wasn't that thick but the body's another tale, Burai!"

"We'll see about that." He calmly got into combat stance.

"Hah! Sensor repairs completed: I now have 360 vision again."

"Heck. This thing's got auto-repair nanomachines too." Sigma grumbled aloud.

"Should've seen it coming." Vadous fumed.

"The armor's no joke. I've tried Galaxy Advances and they don't even scratch it to begin with. It's like… the energy was nullified? I got that impression." Acid Ace reported.

"That material gives me some odd vibes. It's got such an odd and bizarre frequency…" Harp Note whispered to Rock Man.

"What could it be?" Rock Man wondered.

"What! Analysis suggests it's a derivate of "dark matter"…! "Dark matter", one of the main components of the Universe…!" Vadous gasped.

"By all the… How could the guy build that?"

"Hah! I found it on the ruins of a planet not too far from Omicron: seemed to be a base of some sorts by some civilization and they had plenty of this in stock plus the machinery to shape and mold it… Took time and effort but it's worth it… It absorbs most standard energy yet it wasn't able to resist anti-matter because it's not designed to do so." Grave Joker calmly told them.

"Maybe it's the "Creators"… The guys who built Tabuu… They were very advanced a long, long time ago. And they did built bases on other planets from which they explored regions or they collected materials… This will be hard to deal with!" Vadous exasperatedly grumbled.

"Starting to feel the despair, Vadous? I did come properly prepared: I didn't expect the anti-matter but that's all."

The "Wiita" suddenly formed new hands and then grabbed a large sword made of some metallic material: the blade was made of energy and had a purplish tint to it: "Wiita" held it with the right hand as the six-fingered hand overlapped the smaller one and properly gripped it: the sword cut through the air and delete the Wave Roads upon contact: the group was forced to switch locations.

"Heck. Now it's got a sword that can delete "Denpa". Can this become any worse?" Acid Ace cursed.

"It's better not to say it, Shidou. Because there surely IS something worse which they can use against us." Acid whispered.

"Huff. Fine, I shut up!"

"What about that sword?" Rock Man asked Harp Note in the meanwhile.

"No good. It detects the frequency of the "Denpa" and switches to its opposite so that it can disable it upon contact." Harp Note replied while sighing.

"Is that ALL?" Grave Joker taunted.

"Hmpf. I wonder about that." Omega countered.

"What?"

A familiar green energy beam fell from above and pierced through the "Wiita" from top to the bottom: Grave Joker roared as the beam damaged him: "Wiita" stopped hovering and hit the ground but it remained standing and smoking while the beam ceased.

"I thought that the Main Cannon at 25% output would do. The armor must be designed to absorb almost all kinds of attacks but… We're talking about low-power stuff like Battle Cards and such. That's what he must have estimated. But certainly not this."

"Let's not lower the guard, Boss." Omega was still in combat stance and didn't trust the look of things.

"Guh… Gruh… Grah! Kuh…!" Grave Joker's groans of pain rang out.

"Heck. The guy's still alive."

"Guess he strengthened his body defenses. And maybe that's why he doesn't fight directly… He doesn't have that much agility or speed anymore… The price to pay for heavier armor!"

"Kah…! D-damned…! Grack! N-not… yet…! It's… not… over… yet…! I can still… "Wiita"…!"

"You should still be able to shoot another 3 attacks, Boss. Do it and let's finish this guy already." Omega told him.

"I'm on it."

There was a familiar sound, however, and a "portal" opened on the feet of "Wiita": it quickly sunk inside and vanished out of sight so they all cursed: they heard the sound again and it emerged again behind them: it suddenly gripped both Rock Man and Harp Note and began to try to crush them with the strength of the hands.

"Grah…! Dare to move and…! I'll crush them!"

"Bullies go home! Pick someone of your size. Bully."

"Akatsuki~! Die~!"

"I object. Wing Blade!"

Acid Ace shot forward and quickly landed on the chest: he spotted a small compartment which had a cover and lifted it to reveal a red button: he punched it and a beep rang out: the cockpit covers opened to reveal that Grave Joker was alive but most of his body's edges had been deleted and were leaking data: his glasses had shattered and his eyes had become crimson red and psychotic: he had two rings of purplish energy surrounding his wrists.

"D-die~!" He growled.

"Eat your medicine! G Meteor Laser!"

"GRUOWA~H!"

Acid Ace formed a replica of Grave Joker and he loaded up energy before shooting his powerful red laser at the real Grave Joker: it pierced through his whole body and through the rear of the "Wiita": the real Grave Joker tried to move forward but was deleted before he could take 2 steps forward: the "Wiita" stopped working and the hands loosened so Rock Man and Harp Note warped away while the robot screeched and collapsed face-down on the ground causing a noticeable shaking of the ground: it began to smoke and short-circuits began to happen there and there while the pieces hovering over it dropped at random around and atop the body: the eye died down and became black as if to signal it was totally halted.

"Phew. Talk about a monster!" Acid Ace sighed in relief.

"No energy detected. Target is devoid of power. Power losses detected in 87 spots across the body. It's unable to restart." Acid analyzed.

"By Vienna!" A familiar voice gasped in horror.

"Huh? Aha-hah: so you were looking!"

Acid Ace spotted Phantom Black: he'd been hiding inside of the ruins and apparently had been looking on: Assassin Shinobi was standing close by and looked indifferent.

"What a freak!"

"Devil."

"And those 2 too…!"

Kurayami and Kanaya were revealed to have been looking on from an ever higher Wave Road.

"Damn it! It's them! Run, Shinobi!"

"R-roger!"

"Not so fast! Hyde! We've got a score to settle~!"

"We'll be having the behemoth back! Don't run, you damned men!"

Phantom Black and Assassin Shinobi ran for it and Kurayami and Kanaya pursued them: the initial 2 jumped into a "portal" but the other 2 followed them: it closed and the group shrugged.

"Let's let them beat each other. We know how to locate the thing so it shouldn't be too much of a hassle. Now… What do we do with this Colossus?" Acid Ace wondered.

"Maybe we could retrieve it and analyze it to develop better weaponry and armors. They could be useful to deal with those 4."

"I agree. Tabuu says he'll help out with the material analysis using his database." Vadous told them.

"Virus Daemon…!" Rock Man icily muttered.

"Calm down, Subaru – kun. We won and we're alive."

"Yeah… For now… Let's go rest." Burai suggested.

"I need some maintenance." Blood Shadow smiled.

"And I need some sandbag! Hah!" Sigma laughed.

"Guess I'll have an "enlightening" chat with Dragon! Heh!"

"Fine enough. Let's go celebrate today's victory!"


	15. Chapter 15: Prelude from the past

**Chapter 15: Prelude from the past**

11:04 AM (Japan Time), Thursday February the 8th…

"… Subaru – kun."

"Yes, _iinchou_?"

"Do you know someone named "Zelda"?"

"Huh? No. Why do you ask?"

"I got an email saying "To the leader of the sages, Princess Zelda"…"

"… Omega – san's up to jokes again…"

"Ah! That red person."

"Yeah. Should've seen it coming."

Luna was talking with Subaru during break time one morning and he rolled his eyes once he guessed who'd sent the message.

"Eh… _Iinchou_ … Where do I find Luxury Mango?"

"What's that, Kizamaro?"

"Huh? But, _iinchou_ … You ordered us to bring you 66 of them!"

"WHY WOULD I?"

"See?"

Kizamaro and Gonta joined them and brought up a supposed order from Luna but she got annoyed on the spot: Jack wasn't too surprised.

"Huff. A mail I got says "go visit No Name City"!" Tsukasa groaned.

"And mine says "Guards! Bring me the condemned part… I mean, the accused parties!"… I fail to see the point." Kiboyama complained.

"By my might!" Luna fumed.

"Now, now." Subaru tried to calm her down.

"No good." Kizamaro and Gonta sighed.

"MODE!"

"You called?" Mode showed up.

"Bring me the author of those pranks!"

"Omega – san? I dunno where he's at."

"I do not know either." Pedia added.

"Buro~… Gotta be on their HQ, anyway." Ox shrugged.

"Surely." Storm fumed.

"We're going to have some TALK." Miles grumbled.

"Now, now!" Subaru insisted.

"Huff! I need a stroll! Kizamaro, Gonta! Let's go patrol and make sure no older students bully younger ones!"

"R-roger, ma'am!"

"So?" Tsukasa asked Subaru.

"Insofar… We don't have a clue of where Hikaru is at. We're trying to check the underground in a discrete manner."

"And what happened with the battle involving those 4?" Kiboyama asked next.

"K & K managed to easily beat Hyde and Shinobi had to carry the guy outta there. They had to flee to that old manor they'd used before. And K & K have the behemoth back but we can trace it 24/7 from the outside and without them noticing. So we can keep both parties under surveillance. The display of power of Sunday seems to have frightened K & K so they won't dare to make a bold move. We need to wait for a proper moment and then go catch them again." Subaru explained.

"No wonder." Storm wasn't surprised.

"Anyone would've." Miles shrugged.

"My training is proceeding smoothly." Jack commented.

"Glad to hear. Now we'll have an extra 2 defenders."

"Neechan is taking care of keeping an eye on Okudama Studios. She thought she might notice something we don't."

"Good enough."

"Akatsuki told me he'd stumbled upon King trying to rob data from a backup server. He chased him out and played what Joker had said on Sunday. The guy went into a mad rampage. Serves the guy well: apparently had been hoping one day Joker would come back to his side and he'd smash the Satella Police in his place." Jack narrated.

"Hmpf. You got it coming, King… Turning children into your proxies and never caring if they lost their lives in your missions…"

"Yeah. Bastard." Kiboyama grumbled.

"Do we know for sure K & K were the ones who rebuilt Joker?"

"We spied on them and Kanaya was reproaching Kurayami about forgetting and Kurayami argued back that they'd had far more pressing matters at hand and no time to review their memory files. Sounded like they were about to divorce." Subaru added a bit of irony at the end while grinning.

"If they haven't done so 100 times by now." Tsukasa grinned.

"Yeah. Wouldn't surprise me."

"By the way… It'd seem that the interview you took part in on Tuesday evening was pretty successful in calming down things…"

"I know. I simply said that people shouldn't expect too much because even "heroes" have limitations or flaws."

"By the way… Why would that Hikaru guy be in the underground?"

"A club. A gay club." Subaru summed up for Jack.

"Ah yeah. The guy's a sadist, or so I heard. My bad."

"Don't mind it. Well. At least the guy alone can't do much so…"

"The guy's not much of a threat."

"Exactly."

Subaru's Hunter – VG beeped and displayed the "email" icon so Subaru checked it out and fumed.

"It's silly."

"Omega?" Jack asked.

"Yeah. Totally. "The Princess rescues the Prince!"… If he means to turn the _cliché_ around then I don't care but I'm no prince. And Misora – chan is no princess either."

"Really… If only he put some more energy into locating Hikaru so we can figure out what the guy is up to…" Tsukasa fumed.

"I know, I know." Kiboyama fumed next.

"Maybe we should get ready for the next class. It's 11:19 already."

"Yeah. Let's go."

The group headed back up to their floor and into the classroom where they found a message in the digital board that read "COMING SOON" in a red font and Capital letters: Subaru calmly picked the control remote and wiped it out.

"Kurayami hacked into this board and thinks he's gonna intimidate us so easily." He guessed.

"Must've done so from a distance. Sigma would've intercepted the guy if he got too close, no?"

"Or, otherwise… He disguised as a student and did it."

"True. We should warn the sentry about that. We need to tell them apart by their signature." Tsukasa urged.

"I'm on it… Sigma – san? It's me, Subaru. We suspect Kurayami could've posed as a student to come into our classroom and mess with the digital board to leave a "threatening" message… You should watch out for that!"

"Sheesh. What a sneaky rascal! Alright, gotcha. I'll be on the lookout and send this message to the others. That Kanaya gal might try to pull the same stunt for all we know." Sigma grumbled.

"Sorry for the bother."

"Don't mind it, man. It's my mission, anyway. Ah! Blood's come to swap places with me. Hey, Blood. Do you know the password?"

"Of course I do, Sigma. "Mars' Mount Olympus"…"

"OK. Just in case, though… Did you beat Subaru at the simulator the other day?"

"I didn't."

"Good. Data signature is consistent too and Black Ace reports that you're here in front of me so… Sorry for the bother."

"Bah. It's security. The stronger the better. I won't let that wannabe impersonate me so easily."

"OK! I'm off to the HQ to get new orders. Later!"

"See you later. Hey there. I heard about the report already. I'm going to scan the building: the guy's signature should be easy to tell apart from other Wizards." Blood Shadow told them over the Hunter – VG.

"Thanks, Blood."

"Don't mind it, Subaru – kun. It's our duty, anyway."

"Good. We'll talk later. Class is about to begin."

"Good luck."

"Thanks. See you!"

Everyone sat down on their posts just as a teacher came in: she checked that all students were there and nodded.

"So then. Let's begin today's Natural Science class."

"Yes, ma'am!"

11:19 AM (Japan Time)…

"… Oh! Misora – chan. How did it go like?"

"Ah! Dr. Yoiri, ma'am. It went well. The scanner didn't pick up anything odd so I've been given the "all-green"."

"That's good to hear. By the way, did you know?"

"About what? Ma'am?"

"Higo – chan is dating Yoko – chan…"

"Eh… is that so…?"

"And they say there's the cousin of Yoko – chan's who's actually going out with a cousin of Higo – chan and…!"

"I… see."

"Pororon. Why do I feel like she's mixing things up again?"

"Yeah. You can guess it from here."

"Now… Hakase. Will you please stop with your endless "love" tales which are always a mix – up of reality and fantasy?"

"Oh my. Tia – chan. Shidou – chan gave you the ring? I can't see it."

"Ma'am…! Akatsuki and I aren't engaged and he hasn't proposed to me either so…!"

"Oh my! Sorry, my dear. I got the wrong idea again."

Misora walked out of the clinic in the WAXA Japan Branch building and met with Dr. Yoiri on the corridor: she began one of her tales and Misora sighed while Harp seemed to guess why: Queen Tia tried to tell Dr. Yoiri to stop but she brought up a topic that made Queen Tia blush and gasp in a nervous manner.

"What's the matter? Oh please. Dr. Yoiri… Didn't you want to continue analyzing the materials of the "Wiita" robot?"

"Oh my! True, Chief. You have a good memory for those things."

"Well. No offense, but… You were doing that until 15 minutes ago when we took a break." The Chief rolled his eyes.

"My, my. Don't worry, Chief! I just happen to get absorbed with other things and forget what I was doing."

"I know, I know. Now… Could we resume work?"

"Of course."

"By the way, ma'am… Who's keeping watch at Okudama Studios?" Misora asked Queen Tia.

"Sigma replaced Blood Shadow a little while ago. Vadous double-checked and he was the real one so…"

"Ah. Alright. Please remember, ma'am. Suzuka is also being targeted by that ugly gal so…"

"Don't worry. I'll freeze her in ice if she dares to come too close to the building. And the Security Wizard has been equipped with a scanner to check if the people coming in and out are human or Wizards. So she can't try to sneak as a human. All entrances are controlled."

"Good. What about ducts?"

"Have sensors on them… And we'd know if she tries to disable or impair them."

"Excellent. Oh well. Guess I'm going to check on the status of things with Akatsuki – san before heading back."

"I haven't spoken with him today either so let's go check."

Both headed into the Command Room but Akatsuki wasn't there so they tried his Satella Police HQ desk: he wasn't there either so they tried the outer yard next: "Wiita" had been placed face-up on the ground to the right of the building and it was large enough to occupy almost the whole length of the yard: several scaffoldings and stairs had been placed all along its height to allow people to climb and check out the shell from close by: Akatsuki was standing one of those and talking with Acid.

"Akatsuki – san!"

"Huh? Ah. Hibiki and Queen Tia… I was checking out what we've found out about the cockpit system… It's really amazing!" He grinned.

"Shidou. Don't get _otaku_ now." Acid dully warned.

"OTAKU? ME? NO WAY!" He gasped.

"Oh yes. You were SO _otaku_ back when we were in Dealer…"

"Thought that'd make me cool!"

"I fail to see the relationship between one concept and the other."

"Oh, shut up you omnipresent proxy hired by Lucifer and his minions."

"I cannot find the point of such a statement."

"I give up. Hakase~…! You shouldn't have given the guy such a lawyer mentality!"

"I AM NOT A LAWYER!" He got annoyed.

"Why do they need to do that?" Misora wondered.

"Maybe it's the way they complement each other's flaws?" Queen Tia suggested.

"Pororon. Maybe so."

"Ahem! Anyway! Did you want to ask me something?"

"Has Kanaya done any suspicious moves?"

"No. Surveillance indicates that she hasn't come out of the behemoth in the last 30 hours. Which must mean she's brewing up something. I was going to ask Queen Tia to continue the surveillance. I don't want to be called a pervert for checking out what the gal's up to. Especially if it involves you or Suzuka." He told them.

"Alright. Leave it to me. I won't be fooled by her fake beauty. I will figure out what she's up to. And stop her if she tries to put some plan into motion." Queen Tia turned serious.

"I'm counting on ya."

"Fine. By the way… Did Tabuu contribute something?"

"He found the place Joker mentioned and Vadous has seized all the stuff there… He's going to move those to Subspace I… Y'know, that planet in that "Subspace" dimension which he controls…"

"Ah yes. Good. Then it'll be harder for anyone to pick it up without being detected."

"What about Hyde and Shinobi?"

"Hyde's reading Macbeth and claims that he's not going to do anything until he's finished so Shinobi's trying to learn chess with Phantom but doesn't seem to be having much success. Assassin merely roams around and seemingly is happy that it can attack sheep when it feels like it."

"Macbeth… Wasn't that that tale about 3 witches deluding a King or something like that?" Queen Tia recalled.

"Yeah. I think so. You can check it out later."

"Shakespeare, eh? I remember that there was a fan club back when high school and they played _Hamlet_." Daigo recalled.

"They sound like omens!" Utagai turned white.

"Not again." Cygnus sighed.

"Now, now." Amachi tried to calm him down.

"Super Hero – sama~! Super Man's come back from Nowhere In Particular to challenge ya to a _shogi_ match!" Omega suddenly appeared right behind Akatsuki.

"WHOA! Don't startle me like that, Omega! And stop saying nonsense, man. I'm busy."

"Waiting for Queen Tia's St. Valentine's chocolate?" Omega asked in a hushed tone of voice.

"E~H?"

"If you behave, then… I "might" consider it." Queen Tia joked.

"Sheesh."

"Oh true! St. Valentine's! I gotta ready mine for Subaru – kun! The second one… The first one was 2 years ago, 1 year after the whole FM invasion deal… I hardly had time to think about that back then."

"I see. How does the chocolate need to be?"

"It can be any type. It's usually styled to wrap it on a box like it was a present…"

"Alright."

"Oops. It's time for me to head back. The recording will soon begin. Well. Another few days and then whole season filming will be over. Which will mean a nice break." She checked the watch.

"Then let's go together just in case."

"Roger, ma'am. Later, Akatsuki – san."

"Huh? Ah. Yeah. Later. Stay healthy."

"If you show me a _yoga_ pose then I "might" give it to you." Queen Tia teased Akatsuki.

"I fail to see the logic." Acid dully muttered.

"It's the OMENS!" Utagai yelped.

"Denpa – Henkan! On Air!"

Both girls transformed and used the Wave Station to reach the Wave Roads: they rushed away while Amachi was trying to calm Utagai down along with Cygnus: Akatsuki sighed and resumed looking at the "Wiita" while Acid checked a list of something.

"Oh well. I guess we've earnt a break."

"Yes. But we should make a move to try to catch some of the criminals."

 _OK! I'm all fueled up! Let's go catch them and put an end to the battles!_

21:19 PM (Japan Time)…

"… Why did you call me to this room, _aibou_?"

"It's sound-proof. I customized it to have conversation I don't want others to overhear."

"It involves… The "other" front?"

"Of course. There was a message in that terminal!"

"From Virus Daemon?"

"Yeah. "This is the Prelude from the Past!"… And that means that this is something he staged for… The whole of this was a distraction and he's plotting something in the "past"… That is, on the 21st century!"

"Devil."

"So I'm going to go there with Omega and check on things. I'm getting reports 3 times a day through Daratsu and Kuro Kaze since I stationed them in my Bermuda base. Insofar nothing has happened but I fear it's a matter of days!"

Vadous and Tabuu were talking in a storage room somewhere: both were whispering even though the room was sound-proof: Vadous was nervous and Tabuu gasped when Vadous explained things.

"So he isn't dead."

"No. I had to say that to the Satella Police because I can't disclose the existence of the "other" front. But since the guy's stunt was the same as yours then I got suspicious from the very first moment. The guy must be hoping we forget him. But I already warned the "Committee"."

"Hum. I see. If you need my help then I'll come along. I can always pretend I went off to explore some planets for a while."

"Good. We'll do like here. Keep your presence as hidden as possible and tell only a very limited pool of persons. If Virus shows up and starts getting annoyed then you'll reveal yourself. That should shock the guy and scare him: he should know how powerful you are."

"Understood. I'll abide by your orders. I'm not going to let a psycho like that man roam free and do whatever he likes. A leftover from a collapsed system…"

"I owe you one."

"Don't mind it. You built me this armor so I owe you that much. I'm not fond of those psychos who treat youth as lifeless objects and rob them their youth and innocence."

"Good. We'll depart the day after tomorrow: I only need to finish up some preparations. Lartes and Kir Osh will be in charge and both Blood and Sigma will remain too."

"Gotcha."

There was a beep and a nearby interphone activated.

"Boss? It's me, Lartes. Can I come in?"

"Of course."

Lartes came in and shut the door: he handed Vadous a folded paper and he opened it: Vadous read it and he quickly got furious: he crushed the paper with his right hand.

" _Mil milions de llamps i trons_!" He cursed.

"Catalan? "A billion blistering barnacles"…" Tabuu automatically translated, surprised.

" _Ah! Le forban!_ "

"French next? "The pirate!"…? Which pirate?"

" _Quello bastardo!"_

"Italian? "That bastard!"…"

" _Negodyay_!"

"Russian, even! "Rascal!"…"

" _Maltido tipejo_!"

"Spanish, huh? "Damned guy"!"

"READ THIS!"

He handed Tabuu the ball of paper and he clumsily restored it to its original form.

"Huh… "I got ahead of ya thanks to the infection! Eisei – sama."… I see… So that confirms it all… This was sent to _aibou_?"

"Yeah. Black Ace stored it as spam, obviously enough, but the analysis program detected the name "Eisei" so…"

"And this means that… Virus Daemon has come and recruited Fake Hikaru and brought him to the 21st century. To the year 2012."

"Yeah. Another reason to work on the preparations to leave and soon!"

"I can go ahead tomorrow if you want. Send a message to the "Committee" so that they know I'm coming and that I'm in you guys' side…"

"I'll take care of that." Lartes rushed out.

"OK. I'm counting on you to give them the early warning. No need to be subtle: if Virus bothered to order Fake Hikaru to send this message it's because he no longer intends to hide."

"The message will surely be untraceable to begin with so it's not worth trying it."

"Yeah. We can try but like you say… Chances that we can't figure out the origin are high."

"By the way… Sorry for switching topics, but… Are we keeping a close watch on that damned black hole wannabe?"

"Of course. Viruses are stationed in every possible spot. The only thing there are the usual self-regenerating "R" guys. Once we find out the protocol that does that then we'll be able to stop it."

"Fine. We mustn't leave loose threads hanging around!"

"Huff. Alright. Let's get out and I'll begin arranging things. I gotta talk with Omega too."

"Fine."

They both came out into the corridor and spotted a paper with a simplistic drawing of a spider stuck on the wall with cello-tape: Vadous grumbled and ripped it from the wall.

"Spider-Man V 2207 2 strikes back! SSSSPIDE~RRRRR!" Omega laughed close by.

"O-ME-GA!"

"Yo~! _Shachou_! Ya called? Did ya know? Regal – shachou is about to hire ya as provider of funky stuff!" Omega laughed.

"Regal? Dr. Regal? The guy's in jail!"

"Oh no! I mean TALEZZZZ!"

"Tales? What "tales"?" Vadous grumbled.

"Of… ZYMPHONIA~…" He made a howl-like voice.

"Tales of Symphonia? What the heck is that? A retro _anime_?"

"Close! It's a game! And there's the Lezareno Company President, Regal – _shachou_! Voice by SSSSSNAKE~!"

"Lower it!" Vadous annoyingly ordered.

"Maybe Chief Lezareno picked his codename from there?"

"Dunno. Don't seem him as the type to worry about some game. I'm sure he thought of it by the time he got ascended and that was over 10 years ago to begin with." Vadous fumed.

"What's this scandal?" Tsukasa and Kiboyama rushed there.

"Sorry. I'm about to scold this idiot." Vadous sighed.

"Please do so! We were about to sleep and it woke us up!" Both complained.

"Heard that, Omega? Apologize! NOW!"

"OK! Sorry for that: I was training for my role as narrator in Hyde's Macbeth recreation!" He laughed.

"Yeah. Sure." Both skeptically replied.

"Go back to your rooms. You! Get into the soundproof room: we'll discuss there. You go back already, Tabuu."

"Fine. Good evening."

Tabuu warped out while Omega suddenly jumped into the ceiling and began to crawl across it while hanging down: Vadous grumbled as the guy ran inside of the storeroom and he shut the door: Tsukasa and Kiboyama headed back into one of the rooms and resumed their video-conference with Subaru.

"You heard it, Subaru – kun." Tsukasa sighed.

"Omega, the guy…!"

"Huff. He was so chaotic when "Operation: Independence"… Anyway. Let's hang out on Saturday. We can go watch a movie at the theaters: deal?" Subaru asked them after sighing.

"Deal. It's been a while. What about Solo?"

"Oh, Solo? He's gone to train somewhere. He doesn't seem to be interested so… Let's focus on tomorrow's lessons. I'll go sleep. See you tomorrow at the school, you 2!" Subaru smiled at them.

"Good night, Subaru – kun and Gino – kun. I'm going to my room."

"Good night, both of you."

Tsukasa came out and returned to his room: he changed into green pajamas and climbed into the bed: he turned off the lights.

 _You don't impress me anymore, Hikaru. Because I'm surrounded by wonderful friends! And I have powerful bonds!_

 **THE END**


End file.
